Love Bites
by Strawberry Nightmare
Summary: COMPLETED Cross between LV and Miami. Nicks sister gets caught up in a serial killer's sick and twisted game. R and R please. Part 1 in the Amelia series.
1. Case of the Ex

**Title:** Love Bites

**Pairing:** Sara/Nick, Amelia/Speed, hints at Amelia/Grissom

**Spoiler:** Lost Son, Viva Las Vegas, Pilot, basically all CSI episodes up to season 4/5ish.

**Summary:** After Nick's older sister Amelia transferred from Las Vegas, he thought he'd never see her again. Then she became a victim in a serial killer's game. Now, the Las Vegas CSIs are racing against time to find the killer.

**Disclaimer:** I only own what you do not recognize. I.E: Amelia, Evan, and the victims and suspects. CSI Belongs to Jerry Bruckheimer and all of those smart people who created these fine CSI series.

**My Original Note:** Ok. Explanation: Nick is the youngest of 7 children. So I'm just adding a sister to the mix. Um, I try to keep to the show and I try not to do anything stupid. If anybody could give me help with the whole forensic part, please, I love input. This will be a six story sequel. This is the first story. This takes place after Bloodlines. And it takes place after Lost Sons. It's basically about a month and a half after Lost Sons. So, please be kind. and please review! I would really like to know how I'm doing.

**My New Note:** Hey everyone! I am in the middle of a rewrite. I'm basically trying to make things flow better. I first wrote this when I was like 16. Now that I'm 21, I'm a better writer and I'd like to make this a better story. I hope you like!

**Chapter 1: Case of the Ex**

_"There's no need to_

_Reminisce about the past_

_Obviously cause that shit did not last." -Mya 'Case of the Ex'_

Amelia knew what she was doing. How could she not? She thought she should feel good about it. For the last fourteen years she had been abused by her boyfriend-turned husband-turned ex-husband. She always did whatever he wanted her to, but even Amelia Claudia Stokes had her limits. But yet she wondered, as she sat in the court room, why seeing him in hand cuffs didn't make her feel better.

In all respects, she would rather see him hanged.

But then again, the defense _was_ blaming everything on her.

They were trying to make it seem like she's been lying about the cuts and the bruises and the broken bones. She has a badge and a gun therefore she's the guilty one. _The biggest load of shit I've ever heard,_ Amelia thought to herself as she looked around the court room. _Sounds like the Feds to me. Assholes._ Everyone was staring at her. Watching. Waiting.

"Mrs. Martin?" The defense attorney asked. Amelia cringed and looked up at him, slightly glaring. Two years and people were still calling her Mrs. Martin.

"I prefer Ms. Stokes, if you don't mind." She said a bit harshly. The defense attorney smiled. He was obviously a defense attorney for scum like Evan Martin. Amelia glanced at her ex-husband. He sat in his grey suit, smiling at Amelia. That sick smile that makes you want to hurl. It makes your skin crawl. _How did I fall in love with that?_ Amelia thought to herself. Amelia turned back to the D.A. She had forgotten his name within minutes of hearing it.

"Of course. Now, what is your current job?" He asked. Amelia rolled her eyes and looked at the ground to her right.

"I'm a Crime Scene Investigator for the Miami-Dade Police Department Crime Lab." She told him. And now she waited for the next question. It was always the same. She could already hear it coming.

"A CSI? So you work in different crime scenes?" He asked. Amelia nodded, not the exact question she was looking for, but close to it.

"That's what we tend to do." She said, looking up at him. He smiled again and Amelia felt a shiver go up her spine. Same thing with Evan. _God, they are the same type of scum._

"So, you've handled spousal abuse cases, haven't you?" He asked. _Bam. The million dollar question. Duh, you idiot. Amelia _bit back a snide comment.

"Yes. Of course. A spouse killing their spouse happens a lot more than people realize." She replied. The D.A. spun and looked at the jury. They had bored looks on their faces. Amelia couldn't tell if they were on her side or Evans and that scared her. Amelia had always been good at reading people's faces. But it seems that leaving Las Vegas has dulled her senses. That or she was just tired.

"So you admit to knowing the 'qualifications' of a husband beating a wife?" He asked. Amelia held back a laugh and a curse.

"Everybody does. What, do you think I'm making this up?" She asked angrily, tired of his stupid and pointless questions. The D.A. looked at her, smiling evilly. _Oh great, more stupid questions,_ Amelia visibly rolled her eyes.

"Did you or did you not date Evan for four years before marrying him?" He asked.

"Yes."

"Did you or did you not make him move to Las Vegas in 1998?"

"I didn't make him do anything." She told him. She was seriously getting tired of his questions and she was ready to slam his head into a wall.

"Just answer the question." He told her forcefully.

"I did." She shot at him. _You blooming idiot,_ she added to herself.

"Yes or no." He said, more angrily than before.

"No, I didn't make him move to Las Vegas." Amelia said.

"Did you or did you not ever tell your brother, Nicholas Stokes, whom you worked with in Las Vegas, about your husband beating you?" He asked. Amelia sighed.

"No, I did not tell him, or anyone else, until a few weeks ago." The D.A. frowned and looked at the jury.

"Did you have a sexual relationship with a fellow CSI in Las Vegas? A man named Gil Grissom." He asked. Amelia scoffed.

"No, I did not." Amelia told him. That was the truth. She was married; she couldn't have done anything with Grissom. They just shared an office.

That's all.

He was her mentor.

Her friend.

Someone whom Amelia was highly attracted to, but nothing ever happened.

Besides...she had been married.

The D.A. spun around. He had an accusing look on his face and it made Amelia want to laugh. The D.A. had it all wrong and he was so stupid. But he was the perfect defense attorney. He knew how to turn everything around to where he laid the blame on everybody but his client.

"What was your relationship with Dr. Grissom?" He asked. Amelia shuddered as he smiled at her.

"Gil was my co-worked. A mentor of sorts. We-I-he let me keep my notes and a desk in his office." Amelia stammered.

"Why?"

"Because we share similar interests. He is a highly skilled entomologist, and I am an aspiring entomologist." Amelia explained. She knew Gil, Catherine, Jim, Warrick, and Nick would sometime come into this. It was inevitable. They were a big part of her life, even if she only spent two years in Las Vegas. They were the best two years of her life. The Las Vegas crime lab is one of the best crime labs in the country. Everybody on the night shift was great to her. She had missed them so much over the last four years, her brother the most.

"Can you clarify what an Entomologist is?" The D.A. asked. Amelia suppressed her laughter and nodded.

"Entomology is the study of bugs; ergo an Entomologist is someone who studies bugs." Amelia explained not only for him but for the rest of the people in the courtroom. _Yeah, I forgot. Not everyone has a brain. Forgive me, oh retarded one._

"So, Dr. Grissom, Gil, was your mentor." He said, turning away from her again and flashing his smile at the jury. Amelia wanted to vomit.

"Need me to clarify what a mentor is?" Amelia asked. Chuckles broke out around the courtroom. Even from the judge. An angry smile flashed over the D.A.'s face.

"No, that's fine. So, Dr. Grissom was your friend, but you never told him about your husband beating you?" He asked. Amelia once again rolled her eyes. Give me a fucking break! Her mind screamed.

"Ex-husband and no. I pretty much kept it to myself. How many wives do you know that tell everyone that they're beating beat?" She shot back. The D.A.'s cold brown eyes bore into Amelia's sparkling green eyes.

"What about Sara Sidle?" He asked. Amelia's heart stopped. Her eyes shifted from his and she sank back into her chair. Sara was not a good topic. Not a good one at all.

In 1999, Amelia started writing her third forensic book. Amelia was having trouble with it, so Gil suggested a former student of his, Sara Sidle. Amelia took leave and went to San Francisco. It was trouble from the beginning.

Sara had unknown hate against Amelia even before they met. Amelia, in the end, guessed it was because of Grissom. In the beginning Sara hardly made an effort. Whenever Amelia mentioned Grissom, Sara either tensed or loosened up. After a couple of weeks Sara asked Amelia what her specialty was.

Amelia told her it was blood splatter. But she also told her she was studying to be an entomologist and Grissom was helping her.

Sara freaked and refused to talk to her after that. Amelia was confused, but after one last try and one last conversation, Amelia left. Amelia hadn't seen or talked to Sara since then and that was fine with Amelia. Sara seemed too hostile for Amelia sometimes. Not a big people person.

Like Grissom.

"Ms. Stokes?" The D.A.'s stupid, annoying voice snapped Amelia out of her thoughts.

"Oh. Sara. Uh. What about her?" Amelia asked.

"Did she find out about your husband allegedly beating you?" The D.A. asked. Amelia gulped. How would he know? Did he call her?

Amelia and Sara's last conversation had been tense. Sara saw a bruise on Amelia's upper arm and demanded answers. Amelia didn't need to say anything. Sara realized, after looking at the whole bruise, that it was hand shaped. Sara knew Amelia was married and she put the pieces together.

Amelia denied it and said it was from the last case she did. Sara didn't buy it but said no more. Amelia left the next day. As far as she knew, Sara never told anybody about what happened. Amelia silently thanked her for that. Nick and the Las Vegas CSIs would find out when Amelia was ready to tell them.

"She saw a hand shaped bruise on my upper arm. She knew I was married and she put two and two together. She's a smart woman." Amelia told him. The D.A. forced a fake smile and turned to face the 'crowd'.

"Tell me about Timothy Speedle." He said. Amelia sighed. And then the tears threatened to fall. She took a deep breath.

"What does Tim have to do with any of this?" Amelia asked snidely.

"Do you live with him?" He asked. Amelia's lower lip quivered.

"I did." She answered simply. _Please do not go into this!_ Amelia begged silently. _I can't handle this._

"You did?" He asked. Amelia nodded her head and looked down at the ground.

"He was killed a month ago." Amelia managed to say, looking right at him. The D.A. actually managed to look sorry. Amelia wiped away a stray tear.

"I'm sorry for your loss. So, you were together?" He asked. Amelia nodded.

"Dating. He let me stay with him when he saw Evan beating me up." Amelia said. Her only witness to anything was dead.

"He saw Mr. Martin beating you?" He asked. Amelia nodded again.

"Evan came to the office one day, before shift was over. He cornered me when no one else was around. Then Tim came and he stopped Evan after he hit me a few times. After that Tim rarely let me out of his sight, or he made sure someone else was around, but he never told anyone. I made him promise." Amelia sobbed into her hands.

"May I ask who killed Mr. Speedle?" The D.A. asked. Amelia looked up at him and wiped away the tears. She glared at him.

"It had to do with a robbery. His gun jammed at the wrong time." Amelia explained. The D.A. nodded and turned to the judge.

"No more questions, your honor." He turned and walked back to his seat next to Evan. Neither looked happy. _One for me, none for Evan. _Amelia knew that didn't go as well as she hoped, but it was something. The prosecutor stood up and walked towards Amelia.

"Ms. Stokes, why did you stay with Evan for twelve years?" He asked. Daniel Lodge, his name. Nice guy, but still a lawyer.

"I don't know. I mean, he was nice at first. But...I thought if I left him, he would kill me. I knew with him I could stay close to Nick, have my career, and stay...alive." She told him. He nodded; a concerned look on his face. Compassion. Amelia hadn't seen that since Tim. Or rather, the Miami CSIs.

"So, you stayed with him to survive?" He paused. On Amelia's nod he continued. "That's an odd way to survive."

"It's an odd life we live. Look, he's never hurt me enough to kill me; I can protect myself that much. But he's broken bones, made me loose blood, and bruised my upper arms, legs, chest and back. I've done lie after lie for him. I've lied to my friends; I've lied to my family. I'm not lying anymore. Not for him." Amelia put it plain and simple. The prosecutor nodded and looked at the judge.

"No more questions, your honor." The judge turned and looked at Amelia.

"You can step down now, Ms. Stokes." The judge said politely. Amelia smiled kindly and headed towards her seat behind the prosecutor. As she sat down, she pulled her pinstripe jacket closer around her. Being in this courtroom reminded Amelia of Nick.

Amelia grew up in Dallas, one of seven kids; the youngest of five girls. Nick was the youngest of all. Being only one year apart, the two future CSIs got along pretty well. They had their share of sibling fights, but usually got along pretty well. Their favorite thing to do as children was play cops and robbers with their other siblings. Amelia and Nick would pretend to be cops.

As they got older, they drifted apart in some ways, but they still shared that some love. They went to the same college; both got a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice. Amelia waited four years after she graduated before joining the Dallas Crime Lab; Nick waited three years before joining the Dallas Police Force. A year later he joined Amelia at the Crime Lab.

That same year Amelia married Evan. They had met in college, both taking Criminal Justice courses. He went off to Gatesville, Texas to be a prison guard a year before Amelia graduated. He came back to Dallas in 1992, and they started dating. The beatings didn't start until a year later.

When Nick transferred to Las Vegas in 1998, Evan got a job position in the Las Vegas Prison. Amelia and Evan transferred to Las Vegas. He to the prison, her to the Crime Lab. Nick loved his family but he wanted to make roots of his own. But he also loved having Amelia working with him, so he had no problem with Amelia coming to Las Vegas.

But in 2000, Amelia decided it was time to leave. Evan had gotten fired from the Las Vegas prison a few months before, so he had gotten another job offer from the Miami Prison. Amelia decided Miami would be a nice place to transfer to. After they moved, Amelia cut off all contact with her family and friends. They stayed for a year before Evan got fired. He wanted to move but Amelia didn't. She had grown close to the Miami team and didn't want to leave. She had also grown close to Timothy 'Speed' Speedle.

A year later Amelia divorced Evan after he stabbed her twice and broke three of her toes. He stayed away for a while, but it didn't last long. Speed protected her as best he could after he saw Evan beating Amelia up. But then...he died and there was no one to protect Amelia.

Now, here she was. Bruised and cut up, sitting in a courtroom in black pinstripe pants with a white button up shirt and a pinstripe jacket. She wore black high heels with it. Not her usual attire, but hey, she was in court. One thing Amelia had learned from being a CSI was that when you went to court, you dressed nice. By the way things had gone so far, it wasn't looking to good.

She needed a sympathy vote.

------

A day. It took less than a day. Less than a day to crush Amelia's world. It took less than a day for them to find a verdict. Some verdict.

_Not guilty._

Two words that seemed to make everything fall beneath Amelia. She was lost without Speed. She was sad, angry, and empty without him.

She was at his empty apartment now. The one she moved into when they were dating. She had all of her things, 4 bags of stuff, in the trunk of her white SUV. She still had some of Speed's things, but most of it had been given to his family. She had sold all of the furniture and dishes. She was leaving Miami. She couldn't afford to stay. Her life and her sanity depended on it.

As she threw her last bag in the car and climbed in she didn't notice the figure watching her from across the street. He was sitting in his car. As Amelia's car sped past him, he started up his car and followed her.

Even as the black sedan followed Amelia out of Miami, she still paid no attention. The car, and the person in the car, never made any move to strike. He just followed her.

He followed her through Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arizona, and finally Nevada. The three day drive had taken it out of the driver of the sedan. But he still noticed as Amelia drove into Las Vegas.


	2. Making Sense of It All

**Title:** Love Bites

**Pairing:** Sara/Nick, Amelia/Speed, hints at Amelia/Grissom

**Spoiler:** Lost Son, Viva Las Vegas, Pilot, basically all CSI episodes up to season 4/5ish.

**Summary:** After Nick's older sister Amelia transferred from Las Vegas, he thought he'd never see her again. Then she became a victim in a serial killer's game. Now, the Las Vegas CSIs are racing against time to find the killer.

**Disclaimer:** I only own what you do not recognize. I.E: Amelia, Evan, and the victims and suspects. CSI Belongs to Jerry Bruckheimer and all of those smart people who created these fine CSI series.

**My Original Note: **I am adding Miami into this. There will be flashbacks throughout this story. Uh, I try to make the whole forensic part of this make sense, which I why I watch CSI while I write.

**My New Note:** Here is my rewrite of Chapter 2!

**Chapter 2: Making Sense of it All**

_"Seems like only yesterday_

_This world belonged to me_

_And breathing in your presence_

_Was evident to me_

_Hours filled with words_

_Now silence takes their place_

_Each time I took for granted_

_The nearness of your face." -Milk Inc 'Things Change'_

Sara stared at her cell phone. She had just had the oddest conversation. A lawyer from Miami was asking her about Amelia Martin. Sara told him all she knew, which wasn't much, and then they hung up. Thinking of Amelia had brought up sore subjects.

Like Grissom.

The lawyer asked her about Amelia's relationship with Grissom. Sara told him the truth, she didn't know much. Amelia had left before Sara got there. Holly Gribbs was Amelia's replacement, and Sara was Holly's replacement when Holly was killed. Even when Amelia had gone to San Francisco, Sara hadn't learned much about her. Just that she was, indeed, a great CSI and was abused by her husband.

It didn't take a genius to figure that out, but it was obvious that Grissom, Warrick, Nick, Greg, Catherine, and everyone else in the Las Vegas Lab didn't know. Sara was confused by it. Sara had known her for a week and she knew; they had known her for years.

Sara put her cell phone back in its holder and stared at the cup of coffee on the table. The phone call had made Sara agitated. She had had a bad few months. Ever since she had been caught driving drunk and Grissom drove her home, her feelings for Grissom had been on overdrive. Part of her wanted to admit all of her feelings for Grissom, but then there was Nick. Sara felt so much more comfortable with Nick. She could talk to him about anything, but with Grissom she froze up.

A few days after Sara's drunk driving incident, Nick asked her out. Sara said yes. Now, a few months later, her 'love' life was at a great place. She and Nick were slowly getting to know each other better. But now it seemed like Grissom was...jealous of their new relationship. It had been a weird couple of months.

A blaring rock song pulled Sara out of her thoughts. She looked out the window of the lounge to see Greg head banging in the lab. The sight brought a smile to Sara's lips. She watched as Nick, who was passing by, walked into the lab and turned the music off. She got up and headed over to them.

------

Greg stopped head banging as the music suddenly turned off. He inwardly sighed. It was 'Maxwell Murder' by Rancid. One of his favorite songs. Greg spun around to see Nick standing by the stereo with a smile on his face. Greg held up his hands.

"Before you say anything, I found that in my CD collection. What's so special about that? It's not mine. It's Amelia's." Greg said quickly. Nick frowned at her name. Even after four years, it was still a sore subject.

"It's been four years Greg. She's not coming back." Nick said. Greg frowned.

"Who's not coming back?" Sara asked, stepping up behind Nick. Nick cleared his throat.

"Amelia." Nick told her. Sara nodded.

"Oh, about Amelia. Yeah, so I got a call a few minutes ago. Some defense lawyer in Miami was asking me about Amelia and Grissom's relationship. It was weird." Sara said casually. Nick looked at her.

"What else?" He asked.

_---The Phone Call---_

_"Hello?" Sara asked, answering her cell phone. She was sitting in the lounge, waiting for results on a case._

_"Sara Sidle?" The voice asked. Sara didn't recognize it. The voice was male._

_"Yes. Who is this?" Sara asked._

_"Hello. This is Carl Milton. I'm a defense lawyer here in Miami, Florida. Do you know Amelia Martin?" He asked. _A defense lawyer?_ Sara thought to herself. _Why is he calling me and how did he get my number?

_"Yes, I do."_

_"What's your professional opinion of her?" He asked. Sara suppressed a laugh._

_"Uh, well, she is an extremely good CSI. She knows what she's doing." She answered his question as best she could. She really didn't know all that much about Amelia._

_"Ok. What is your personal opinion of her?" Sara could tell by the tone of his voice that he didn't like her answer to his question._

_"She's a very nice woman. A definite family oriented person, even if her husband did beat her."_

_"What? Can you elaborate?" Definite lawyer, Sara thought as she sipped at her coffee._

_"She had bruises all over her upper arms. I asked her if her husband beat her, but she denied it. It was obvious though." The lawyer was quiet for a minute. It was obvious to Sara that he was not on Amelia's side._

_"What sort of relationship did Mrs. Martin have with Dr. Gil Grissom?" He asked. Sara spit out her coffee. She definitely wasn't expecting that question._

_"Oh, uh. I'm not sure. If they had any sort of relationship it was strictly professional. Grissom is a professional sort of man. He doesn't have relationships with his co-workers." She told him. "Other than that, I don't know. I didn't know Amelia very well. Why are you asking these questions?"_

_"I'm sorry, but I'm not allowed to say. Thank you for your time." He answered. Sara was set to ask another question when he hung up on her. Sara gaped at the phone before finally turning it off._

_"Jerk." She muttered._

---1 Week Later- 9:00 p.m.---

When Sara told Nick about the call, she left out the part about Amelia's abuse. She figured he would find out soon enough. Plus, she didn't think it her place to say. That sort of information was best coming from the person being abused. It was her story to tell, not Sara's.

Sara was running late. She pulled up to the Police Department building and got out of her car. She hurried inside and went to the lounge. Everybody was waiting for her. She forced a smile and sat next to Nick.

"Ok, now that everyone's here. Catherine and I will continue to work on the D.B. at a parking lot at the mall. Nick, Warrick, and Sara, you have a D.B. outside of a gas station." Grissom said. He threw the slip of paper on the table. Warrick, Nick, and Sara all lunged for it. Warrick got it first. He looked it over and passed it to Nick.

Sara looked up at Catherine. She looked like she was on the edge and upset about something. Sara had rarely seen Catherine get upset about a case until they had all the evidence.

"Cath? You ok?" Sara asked. Catherine looked at Sara and forced a smile.

"I'm fine. I'm just on my last nerve with killers." She said. Sara nodded in agreement.

"I think we all understand you there." Sara said, standing up.

---Scene #1- 8:35 p.m.---

Catherine carefully walked around the car, looking at everything. A 31-year-old woman lay dead next to her white sedan. The window was broken and laid in pieces on the driver's seat, blood on some pieces. Catherine noticed a dent in the car door and quickly took a few pictures of it. She looked down at the body.

The woman had an average figure. Her beautiful face was accentuated by her short blonde hair and full pouty lips. Her body had obviously been positioned by the killer. She had been laid on her back, with her right hand flat on her stomach. Her left arm had been pulled out above her head, her fingers put in a design. Catherine took a few pictures of it.

"D." Grissom said, from his spot by her feet. Catherine looked over at him, confused.

"What?" Catherine asked. Grissom pointed at the woman's hand.

"It's sign language for the letter 'D'." He explained. Catherine stood up and nodded.

"Ok. So. Any I.D.?" She asked. Brass came up beside her, holding the woman wallet in an evidence bag.

"Her name is Aja Vechincova." Brass said. "According to this, she goes to University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She's 31." He said. Catherine stared at her.

"Vechincova. Must be Russian or something." Catherine muttered. Brass nodded and held up another evidence bag with a piece of paper in it.

"I'm no expert of European languages, but this looks like Russian to me." He handed it to Catherine. "It was in her car." Catherine studied it for a minute.

"Most likely." She turned to Grissom.

"Did you find anything?" She asked. He held up a shoe print and a swab.

"The killer stepped in the blood." Grissom looked at Brass.

"After we drop this off and hand out assignments, we'll go over to the school. Catherine, you go to the autopsy." Brass and Catherine nodded.

"Right boss." Catherine took a few more pictures and then headed to her Tahoe.

---Scene #2- 9:23 p.m.---

"I hate gas stations." Sara muttered as she, Nick, and Warrick stared at the body of the woman. All three CSIs had their cameras in their hands, but had yet to take a picture.

"Dang. Tons of people around and I bet no one saw anything." Nick said. Sara looked around. It was a large gas station. She turned to the body and took a few pictures of her body as a whole.

"Names Akia Valdez-Whitmore. The wife of millionaire James Whitmore, who is out of town." O'Reilly said. "She's 32, Mexican, and works at a grocery store." He looked down at her and noticed her hand. He looked at the three CSIs, who were now taking pictures and processing the scene. "What's with her hand?"

Nick, who was closest, stared at it closely. Her left arm was extended fully, past her head. Her left hand was in a fist, save for her pinky, which was extended.

"I don't know. It could be anything." He said, he then took several pictures of it.

"Isn't that the letter 'I' in sign language?" Warrick asked as he took pictures of a bloody footprint.

"I don't know. We'll have to ask Griss." Nick replied. He stood up and took pictures of the broken, bloody window and the dented door. Nick lowered himself to the ground and looked under the car. He spotted something underneath the car. He grabbed his flashlight.

He clicked it on and shone it under the car. It took him a second to realize what it was.

"Sara! Rick! Check this out." He called out, smiling. Sara and Warrick stood next to Nick and lowered themselves to the ground. The followed the light and smiled as they recognized the object.

"A bloody knife." Sara muttered, smiling from ear to ear.

"Why my dear, I do believe we've found the murder weapon." Nick said sarcastically, also smiling from her to ear. Sara rolled her eyes in response.

---University of Nevada, Las Vegas- 9:30 p.m.---

Grissom and Jim sat patiently with Susie Michij, Aja's roommate. Susie wiped the tears from her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Aja was a great woman. She came from Russia four years ago. She was an exchange student. She was only supposed to be here for a year, but she loved it too much." She explained. She had a very noticeable Russian accent. Grissom and Jim nodded, showing they understood.

"Did she have a boyfriend?" Grissom asked.

"A boyfriend? Oh yeah, uh. Sergei. Sergei Danliv. An exchange student from Oesha." She told them.

"Oesha?" Jim asked.

"Belarus. He shares a room with Michael Hudson. They are in a different dorm. Aja and Sergei argue all the time. They always fight about the little things. It can be very heated sometimes." She told them. Grissom raised his eyebrows.

"So they physically fight?" He asked. Susie nodded.

"Sometimes. But he said he was going back to Oesha for the weekend." She said. "You should check with Michael." Jim nodded.

"Thank you for your time, Ms. Michij." Jim said with a smile. Susie smiled back.

"Very few Americans can pronounce my last name without help. If I can help in any other way, just let me know." She said as she walked them to the door. They nodded and left. Grissom gave Jim a look as they left.

"I think she likes you." Grissom said as they walked down the hallway. Jim chuckled and straightened his jacket.

"Just wait till she finds out how poor I am." Jim said. Grissom chuckled and shook his head.

"I'm going to head back to the Lab and see if Catherine and Al got anything from the autopsy." Grissom said as they left the dorm hall. Jim nodded and got in his car. As Grissom got in his car he couldn't help but think about Aja and if the killer was Sergei.

---Crime Lab- 9:34 p.m.---

Catherine stared at the Russian woman on the slab. She looked so peaceful, it made Catherine's heartache. But she reminded Catherine of Amelia. Catherine had spent most of her free time thinking about Amelia ever since she saw her in Miami two years ago. Amelia looked troubled and Catherine was embarrassed that she said the things she said before Ames could tell her what was wrong.

"A piece of glass went through her skull and penetrated the brain." Al said. Catherine looked at her as he held out the glass.

"Piece of glass from the window of her car." Catherine responded. Al nodded and pointed to her skull.

"Heavy bruising on her skull also. There is also a stab wound in her lower back. Other than that, she was in great shape and perfect health. Nothing else for me to say right now, I'll let you know later." He said sadly. Catherine sighed and smiled at him.

"Thank you." Catherine turned and walked out of the autopsy room. She walked down the hallway and headed towards the lab. When she got in there Nick was talking with Greg.

"Yeah. Found it underneath her car. Did you find a match?" Nick asked. Greg nodded.

"Sure did. But not just to your victim." Greg handed him the piece of paper as Catherine stood next to him.

"Then who else did it match?" Nick asked, looking at him. Greg looked at Catherine. Her jaw dropped.

"My vic?" Catherine said, stunned.

"You got it. The blood on the knife that Nick found matches both of your victims." Greg said. Catherine and Nick looked at each other.

"Interesting." Catherine murmured.

"A possible serial killer." Nick said. Greg turned and held up two shoe prints.

"The one on the left is from Cath and Griss's D.B., the one on the right is from Nicks. Both from the same shoe, same size, everything. Now. The blood from Cath's print is from your body. The blood from Nick's print is from an unknown." Greg told them. Catherine frowned.

"There may be another body out there." Catherine said sadly. Greg nodded.

"Very possible."

"If there is, we may be running out of time." Nick turned and left the lab. Catherine smiled at Greg.

"Good work Greg." She said. Greg smiled proudly as Catherine left the lab.

_---Miami, 2002---_

_Amelia leaned down and looked at the entry wound on a body. She looked at Alexx._

_".45 caliber?" She asked._

_"You got it." Alexx said. Amelia nodded. Alexx handed her the small evidence bag with the bullet inside. "Pierced the heart and stopped there. He also has discoloration on his mouth." Alexx pulled open his mouth and Amelia looked._

_"Weird. What about the other guy?" Amelia asked, looking at the second male body. Alexx and Amelia walked over to the second body. Alexx pointed at the two bullet wounds near his heart._

_"First one missed his heart, the second one was dead on. .45 also." Alexx told her. Amelia took the small evidence bag from Alexx with the two bullets in it. Amelia looked at the woman on the other slab. She was wrapped in plastic._

_"The Las Vegas case?" Amelia asked. Alexx followed her gaze then looked back at her, she knew what Amelia was thinking. Alexx had been the first one to know that Amelia came from Las Vegas, Horatio was the only other one who knew._

_"Yeah." Alexx said quietly. Amelia shook her head. Suddenly everything was blurry and her head was spinning._

_"I need to go." She said, holding onto the edge of the table._

_"You ok, sweetie?" Alexx asked, looking at her. Amelia took a deep breath and nodded. The last thing she needed was to see anyone from Las Vegas. Not now._

_"I'm fine. Just. I don't know. Probably just a migraine." Amelia forced a smile and Alexx gave her one of her looks. Amelia gave her a real smile, fully knowing that look. "Don't start Alexx. I need to check out these bullets, see if they all came-" Amelia stopped as the doors opened and Horatio and Catherine came in. Amelia's voice was stopped in her throat._

_"Mel." Horatio said. Amelia smiled at him._

_"Hey H." She said. He crossed his arms. He was giving her that look. Amelia groaned inwardly. _Not now H,_ Amelia thought to herself._

_"Two DBs?" He asked, looking at the two male bodies. Amelia followed his gaze and nodded. She looked back at him._

_"Yeah. They worked together and were found three streets apart. I need to head over to ballistics." Amelia said, holding up the two bags of evidence. Horatio nodded and smiled._

_"If you need any help I can get Delko or Speed to help." He said. Amelia shook her head and started walking towards the door, not looking at Catherine._

_"I'm good H. I'm good." She told him before walking out of autopsy. Inside autopsy Catherine turned to Horatio._

_"So this is where Amelia came to." Catherine said. Horatio looked at her and nodded._

_"Yeah. You know her?" He asked. Catherine nodded._

_"Yeah. At least I thought I did."_


	3. Welcome To Miami

**Title:** Love Bites

**Pairing:** Sara/Nick, Amelia/Speed, hints at Amelia/Grissom

**Spoiler:** Lost Son, Viva Las Vegas, Pilot, basically all CSI episodes up to season 4/5ish.

**Summary:** After Nick's older sister Amelia transferred from Las Vegas, he thought he'd never see her again. Then she became a victim in a serial killer's game. Now, the Las Vegas CSIs are racing against time to find the killer.

**Disclaimer:** I only own what you do not recognize. I.E: Amelia, Evan, and the victims and suspects. CSI Belongs to Jerry Bruckheimer and all of those smart people who created these fine CSI series.

**My Original Note:** I'm not sure if Miami has a ballistics guy, and if they do, what his/her name is (unless they just use Calleigh) so I just added my own for now. And I'm not really sure about how their department is set up and stuff, so I just rolled with it. I hope you like! I won't update the next chapter (which I already have written and ready) until at least five more people review. I'd like to know how I'm doing. (I love you laura! You are so awesome!)

**Chapter 3: Welcome To Miami**

_"Remember when_

_We still had memories to share_

_But that was then_

_Seems like they've vanished in thin air." -Milk Inc 'Remember'_

Amelia sighed as she loaded 2 bullets into the .45 colt that they found with the first body. Kevin Jones, their ballistics guy, handed her a pair of ear muffs. She slipped them on and walked over to the water tank. She stuck the gun into the hole and turned her head away.

"Firing two shots!" Amelia called out. She pulled the trigger twin and then pulled it out of the hole. She pulled her ear muffs off and let them hang around her neck. While she put the gun back in its evidence bag, Jones fished the bullets out of the tank and then put them on the evidence bag.

"Two bullets?" A voice said from the door. Amelia rolled her eyes as she loaded two bullets into the .45 colt that they found with the second body. Even when she was mad, he could make her smile.

"I like to be thorough." Amelia said as she turned around. Tim Speedle was leaning against the doorway, his arms crossed, and a smile on his face. _Damn that smile,_ Amelia thought to herself. Speed's smile broadened and his eyes twinkled as he caught sight of Amelia holding the gun.

"A woman with a gun. I like that." Speed said, winking. Amelia rolled her eyes again and walked back over to the water tank.

"Is that why you like Calleigh?" She asked, joking. It was well known that Calleigh and Speed were definitely feeling each other. True, this made Amelia a little jealous, but she wouldn't get mad over it or do anything petty. Calleigh was her friend, and, as much as Amelia hates to admit it, so was Speed. Besides, Amelia was still technically married. Amelia could hear Speed laughing as she slipped her ear muffs back on. She pointed the gun into the water tank.

"Firing two shots!" She called out again. She pulled the trigger twice again and then pulled the gun out. She pulled her ear muffs off and walked over to the counter. Jones fished out the two bullets as Amelia put the gun back in its evidence bag. She walked over to the microscope with Jones and saw Speed still standing in the door.

"Why are you still here?" Amelia asked. _Not that I don't mind, but still, _she told herself as Jones put a bullet from the first body and a bullet from the first colt on the slide.

"H wants to know how you're doing." Speed said. Amelia turned from him and looked through the microscope. She lined up the bullets. No match.

"No match." Amelia said as she looked at Jones. Jones nodded and took the bullet from the first colt off the slide and replaced it with the bullet from the second colt. Amelia turned and stared at Speed as Jones checked the bullets. She kept her face blank and emotionless.

"I'm fine. The case is doing good. Why does everyone care so much?" Amelia asked angrily. Ever since Catherine and Warrick showed up, everybody had been worrying about Amelia and her case. She had enough to deal with; she didn't need everybody down her back.

Speed shrugged and let his arms drop to his side as he stood up straight.

"I'm just doing what H asked me." He said. Amelia glared at him.

"First time for everything, huh? Just don't. I'll have the case done by tomorrow." Amelia spun back around and looked at Jones.

"The bullets from both bodies match the bullet from the second colt." He told her. Amelia smiled and nodded. _Finally something went right in this case,_ Amelia thought.

"Good. Can you get all of the bullets and guns in the bags for me? I'm gonna go check the finger prints." Amelia said. Jones nodded.

"Got it." Amelia smiled and walked to the door. She pushed past Speed and headed towards the lab with Speed following.

"What's wrong Mel?" Speed asked.

"Nothing Tim." Amelia said, not bothering to look back. She needed to get this case done. She couldn't concentrate if someone was bothering her every five seconds. Speed stared at the back of her head in confusion. In the past two years, Amelia had rarely ever called him Tim. She only did that when she was mad.

"Mel," He gently grabbed her arm and turned her arm to face him. She avoided his eyes. "What's going on?" He asked gently. _I could ask the same about you,_ Amelia thought. Speed was rarely ever a 'gentle' sort of guy. Amelia pulled her arm away.

"I've got work to do." She turned and almost ran into Horatio. Amelia bit back a curse. Today was definitely not her day.

This was her fourth day on this case. She had been so wrapped up in the divorce she had been neglecting the case. Because of that, another man had been killed, making it a double murder. She was working her hardest to get the case done, but now everybody was bothering her.

"If everything ok?" Horatio asked in his usual tone of voice. Speed looked confused and Amelia looked mad. Horatio looked from Amelia to Speed. He was pointing at Amelia and making the 'crazy' sign. Amelia reached behind her and hit Speed. She always seemed to know when he was doing that.

"Speed!" She said angrily. Horatio gave a weak smile as Speed chuckled. Beside Horatio, Catherine and Warrick were watching with interest. Since they had been there, Amelia had not said one word to them. They knew something was up.

"So you're not mad at me anymore?" Speed asked. Amelia growled, her face scrunched up in anger. _I just want to get this stupid case done!_ Amelia screamed in her mind.

"Get a life Tim." Amelia said. She looked at Horatio as she visibly relaxed.

"If you want to know how me or my case is going, ask me yourself," She said as nicely as she could muster. "Please." She added, almost begging. At his nod Amelia smiled, gave Speed another hit, and then continued onto the lab.

Horatio looked at Speed who was smiling.

"Could you be nice to her? Ever?" Horatio asked, his tone proved he was just joking. Everybody knew how much Speed liked to tease Amelia. She always got mad and that just made Speed do it even more.

"But it's so much fun to tease her, H." Speed replied. Catherine scoffed beside Horatio.

"Yeah, until she knocks you out." Catherine said, looking up at Warrick who was nodding.

"Or she switches your evidence." He sighed as he remembered that one. Speed looked at him, confused.

"She did that?" Speed asked, fully unaware of the dangers that Amelia can cause.

"No wait. That was Alex." Warrick said, trying to remember.

"No, Alex switched pig blood with human blood." Catherine corrected him. Warrick nodded.

"Oh yeah. Now I remember." Warrick and Catherine walked past a stunned Speed and headed toward the front door, chuckling to themselves. Speed looked at Horatio.

"Are they serious?" He asked. Horatio laughed in response. "Can she do that?" Horatio smiled as he walked past Speed to follow Warrick and Catherine leaving Speed stunned.

---Two Days Later---

Catherine looked around the reception area. She had been waiting for five minutes and it finally paid off. Catherine stood up as Speed walked through the front door.

"Speedle." Catherine said. Speed turned to her and smiled.

"Hey. What's up?" He asked. Catherine smiled.

"I just wanted to ask you a few things about Amelia. If that's all right." Catherine told him. Speed nodded.

"Sure. But first I've got to ask you, how do you know Mel?" He asked.

"She never told you where she came from?"

"Nope. She keeps the past to herself most of the time."

"Oh. Well, we worked together at the Las Vegas Crime Lab." Catherine told him.

"Ok." Catherine and Speed sat down.

"Why is Amelia so tense?" Catherine asked. Speed shrugged and looked at his hands.

"Who knows. She's been to court a lot lately. She blames herself for the death of the second man in her case. She told me that if she hadn't been so caught up in court, she might have been able to catch the guy." Speed said sadly. Catherine nodded. They had all been through that before.

"Are you and Amelia...?" She trailed off. Speed chuckled and shook his head. People always seemed to be asking that question. The truth was he wished they were together. He really liked her; he had ever since they met in 2000.

"Dating? No. She's married." He said, looking away. Catherine could see a red tint in his cheeks.

"Yeah. I just figured she'd be divorced by now, you know? Ah, Ames always tried to make the best of the worst situations." Speed nodded his head in agreement. They both looked up as Warrick walked through the front door. Catherine and Warrick were leaving today, but Catherine wanted to talk to Amelia first.

"You almost ready?" Warrick asked. Catherine nodded.

"Just give me a few minutes." She told him. He nodded. She turned to Speed. "Can you take me to Amelia?" She asked. Speed nodded.

"Sure." They stood up and headed towards Amelia's desk.

------

"But does that make sense?" Calleigh asked Amelia. Amelia shrugged and sat back in her chair, and winced in pain. The stab wound in her back was hurting. She looked across the small isle at Calleigh who was sitting at her own desk, looking at her computer, typing.

"Nothing makes sense anymore." Amelia muttered. Calleigh nodded in agreement. They had been talking about Amelia's case. She had been able to get a fingerprint off the second colt and found a match to an ex-con.

Amelia and Calleigh smiled as Horatio walked up to them. He sat on the edge of Amelia's desk and gave her one of his smiles. Amelia's smile slowly faded.

"What's up H?" She asked. He crossed his arms in front of him. Amelia really hated that smile.

"Good work on your case." He told her, still smiling.

"Thanks H."

"So, how much longer until your divorce is final?" He asked. Amelia's smile faded completely. She stared at him with her eyebrows raised. Calleigh was watching them with delight.

"Oh, uh. Like a couples of weeks. Why?" Horatio's smile was starting to make Amelia suspicious. He only smiled like that when he had upsetting news.

"You have a visitor."

"Who?"

"Sgt. Jordan." He said simply. Amelia squeaked and dropped her head on her desk. Sergeant Joey Jordon was a Miami-Dade cop who had a crush on Amelia. He was a persistent guy. He was really starting to annoy Amelia. Calleigh laughed and clapped her hands.

"Aw come on Ames. He's cute." Amelia sat up, her eyes wide, and looked at Calleigh.

"That has nothing to do with it! He's a pest!" Amelia said. Calleigh laughed. She grabbed a folder off her desk and stood up.

"Whatever you say, Ames." With a smile she walked away from the desks. Amelia turned to Horatio. She glared at him as he continued to give her his famous stare.

"This is all your fault." She said. Horatio stood up.

"You got company." He walked away as Speed walked up with Catherine. Amelia shouted at Horatio's back.

"It's still your fault!" Horatio raised his left arm and waved his fingers at her. Amelia sat back in her chair.

"You know...Joey's out there." Speed said, teasing. Amelia glared at him.

"Don't start." She said tersely. Speed smiled and winked.

"Have fun ladies." He left Catherine and Amelia and headed towards the locker room.

"Have a seat." Amelia motioned towards the chair in front of her desk. Catherine smiled and sat down. "Uh Cath, listen, I'm-" She started to say.

"No. You listen first." Catherine interrupted angrily. "Two years ago you left. You said you would call. You never called. You broke Nick's heart. You were his best friend and you couldn't even bother with a simple phone call." Catherine scoffed. "While you're here living it up in Miami, we're back in Las Vegas praying that you're all right. You even managed to hurt Grissom! Jesus, even Greg is still hoping you'll come back! Warrick and I have tried to keep everything going and you're here making jokes!" Amelia chewed on her bottom lip while looking up at the ceiling and tapping her foot. "You disgust me!" Amelia hesitated, tears brimming in her eyes. She took a deep breath and started, still looking up.

"Evan disconnected my cell phone and monitored everything. He told me I had no reason to keep in touch with you guys. 'Friends come and go. Especially in a job like yours.' He used to tell me." Amelia chuckled angrily. "I wrote. Nobody wrote back. I gave up after a while. Every time I mentioned you guys, Evan would get so mad. I stopped trying. Evan would probably get superbly pissed if he knew you guys were here. But, it really doesn't matter anymore." Amelia looked at Catherine.

"Why?"

"We're getting a divorce."

"Is that why you've been in court so much?" Catherine asked. Amelia wiped away a tear and nodded. "You still could have done something." Catherine said bitterly. "You left us all wondering and praying that you would come back. I hope you don't."

"Look, I'm sorry. I should have done something, but I didn't. I've got to go." Amelia stood up and walked towards the locker room. She couldn't believe that Catherine had really said those things to her. She didn't realize that Catherine was that mad. Amelia needed a shower. She just needed to get away.

She pushed open the door and walked into the locker room. Speed was at his locker, getting ready to leave. Amelia walked over to her locker and opened it. Her locker was right next to his.

"You ok?" He asked. Amelia grabbed her jacket and nodded. She didn't want to talk about it. Not now.

"I'm fine." She replied. She tried to make her voice sound convincing, but she doubted that it worked. Speed shut his locker and leaned up against it.

"So...what about that dinner that you owe me?" He asked. Amelia sighed as she remembered their bet. They had made a bet about some football game and Amelia lost. The bet was whoever lost had to buy the other person dinner. Speed came up with it, so Amelia guessed it was a cheap ploy on his part to take her out to dinner. _I'd go out with him anyways,_ Amelia thought as she hid a smile. _Bet or no bet._

"Not today." She told him as she shut her locker.

"Yes, today. Come on." He threw an arm over her shoulders and led her to the door. "You have some explaining to do." Amelia couldn't help but chuckle and allow him to lead her to the door. He always could make her smile when she was mad. _Damn him for that._ She thought as he kept his arm on her shoulder as they walked through the department. Sometimes a girl just needs to be mad.


	4. Another Death

**Title:** Love Bites

**Pairing:** Sara/Nick, Amelia/Speed, hints at Amelia/Grissom

**Spoiler:** Lost Son, Viva Las Vegas, Pilot, basically all CSI episodes up to season 4/5ish.

**Summary:** After Nick's older sister Amelia transferred from Las Vegas, he thought he'd never see her again. Then she became a victim in a serial killer's game. Now, the Las Vegas CSIs are racing against time to find the killer.

**Disclaimer:** I only own what you do not recognize. I.E: Amelia, Evan, and the victims and suspects. CSI Belongs to Jerry Bruckheimer and all of those smart people who created these fine CSI series.

**My Original Note:** ok. do you guys like it or not? I'm still going to keep writing, but I'd like to know if you like it or not. Uh, this chapter is just...a chapter. lol. I hope it makes sense and thanks to everybody who has reviewed.

**Chapter 4: Another Death**

_"Baby you can be tough_

_Say enough is enough_

_You can even be blunt_

_Just do it with love love love love_

_Tell me I'm wrong_

_That I'm coming on way too strong_

_Don't think I'll be crushed_

_Just do it with love love love love_

_Just do it with love love love love_

_Just do it with love." -Hilary Duff 'With Love'_

"She was found just like this." Jim Brass said as he led Nick and Grissom towards the blue Mustang. It was early in the morning and the sun was starting to shine. Shift would be over soon and maybe Jim would be able to get some sleep. _Maybe,_ He thought, _is always the word in a serial murder case. _The body of 33-year-old Alia Kraushaar lay dead next to her car in the parking lot. A puddle of blood surrounded her head and once beautiful face. Her shoulder length blonde hair was stained with blood.

Her left arm was stretched past her head, her hand was, like the others, in a letter in sign language.

"E." Grissom said, reading everybody's mind. Nick started taking pictures of the body after setting his kit down and slipping on latex gloves.

"Ok. So, D, I, E. Die?" Nick said. Grissom nodded and took samples from underneath her fingernails. When he was done, he walked down to her feet. He printed the bloody shoeprint and then took a swab.

Grissom stood up and looked around. They were outside of a condominium complex. The morning had brought a resident out to the garage where he found the body. Grissom looked at his watch. 7:10 a.m. He turned around and stood up.

"Ok, so say this vic's blood matches the unknown blood from the shoeprint. How'd he get it on his shoe before killing her?" Nick asked, obviously confused. Grissom couldn't hide that he too, was confused. It was obvious that this vic had only been dead an hour at tops. Grissom looked at the body. He noticed she had a cut on her right arm, new.

"Maybe, he took it from her." Nick gave Grissom one of his looks. Grissom smiled. Jim walked back up to them.

"Ms. Kraushaar is the wife of Michael Faire, a professor at UNLV. Michael is over there." He pointed at him. "He says his wife left at 6:15 to go to work and that's all he knows."

"Right." Nick scoffed. He turned and walked over to Michael. "Excuse me, Mr. Faire?" Michael nodded.

"Yeah." Nick shook hands with the man. Michael Faire was a strong built man, about 6'1" and pronounced muscles. His face and voice were unusually calm.

"I'm Nick Stokes with the Las Vegas Crime Lab. I just want to ask you a few questions." The man looked visibly annoyed.

"Sure. Go ahead." He sighed. Nick scowled.

"Ok. How did your wife get that cut on her right arm?" Nick asked.

"She was, uh, chopping vegetables a few nights ago. She moved her right arm and accidently cut it. She bled all over the floor, it was horrible. It seeped through the floor. The guy under us has been complaining since it happened. Alia just came home from the hospital yesterday." He said. Nick fought not to roll his eyes. He'd have to talk to the guy beneath the Faire's.

"Why didn't you clean up the blood?" He asked.

"The cleaning lady was supposed to do it, but she never came." He shrugged it off. Nick sighed. It was pretty sick to just leave blood there to seep through the floor.

"I'm going to need to see all of your shoes." Nick told him. Michael's eyes narrowed and he crossed his arms.

"Why?" He asked angrily.

"We need to rule you out as a suspect, sir." Nick told him. Michael scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"Fine, but I did step in the blood so, don't be surprised. Come with me." He said finally. Nick turned and motioned for Jim. Jim walked over.

"What do you got?" He asked. Nick's smile was broad.

"Mr. Faire is going to let me see his shoes." Nick told him. Jim turned to Michael.

"How nice of him." Jim said sarcastically.

----UNLV----

Catherine sighed as O'Reilly knocked on the door for a third time. Catherine looked up at Warrick who looked visibly annoyed. This was not how Catherine wanted to spend her morning. She was ready to go home and spend some time with her daughter, if her daughter wanted to, of course. Lindsey had begun to get out of control.

"Mr. Danliv! LVPD!" O'Reilly shouted. People were poking their heads out of the doors, staring at the small group of people in front of the certain door. They could hear a voice inside grumbling about something and then the door finally opened.

"Dude, Sergei ain't here. Left school yesterday." The sleepy student said.

"Where is he?" O'Reilly asked. The student rubbed his eyes.

"Said something about a hotel a few streets over. Over by that huge gas station. The dude was angry." He told them. Warrick and Catherine exchanged a look. Warrick looked at the student.

"Does he own any knives?" Warrick asked. The student looked surprised by that question.

"No. Sergei relies on his fists to solve his problems. I've only seen him with those plastic knives from the cafeteria." He told them. Warrick frowned.

"Does he work?" Warrick asked. The student nodded.

"Sure does. He starts at like, 5:00 and goes until 9:00 the next morning. The dude never sleeps." Warrick sighed.

"Thank you."

---DNA Lab---

"Ok, so. The blood on the husband's dress shoes matches your third vic, but it doesn't match the print." Greg told Nick. Nick sighed and rubbed her chin. It was not what he was hoping for. They had no leads now. Nick hoped that Catherine and Warrick were having better luck over at the college.

"So he was telling the truth."

"Apparently. Oh. The blood from the second shoe print matches your third vic. So does the blood from the third shoe print."

"So the killer must have been in the Faire's condo."

"Yeah. You guys find any connection between the vic's yet?" Greg asked. Nick shook his head.

"Not yet. Cath and Warrick are talking to the boyfriend of the first vic. So hopefully we get something out of that." Nick turned and walked out of the lab. As he walked towards the layout room, he caught up to Sara who was heading there also.

"Hey." Sara said, looking up from the file she was reading. Nick smiled.

"Hey. Anything new?" He asked. Sara shook her head.

"Not that I know of." They walked into the layout room and found Grissom, Catherine, Warrick, and Jim already there. Nick and Sara sat in the last available seats.

"What do we have? Any connections?" Grissom asked, looking around. Warrick set three pictures on the middle of the table, one of each victim. He stood up and pointed to the first one.

"Aja Vechincov. A 31-year-old, blonde, Russian, foreign exchange student. Her boyfriend, Sergei Danbliv, and her used to have arguments all the time. Sergei, though, was at work during her murder." He then pointed to the second picture.

"Akia Valdez-Whitmore. A 32-year-old, blonde, Mexican wife of millionaire James Whitmore. He has been out of town for the last week. Mrs. Whitmore was killed at the gas station next to the hotel where Sergei Danliv is staying."

"But he was at work during her murder, also." Catherine added and Warrick sat down.

"The blood from the foot print at the first scene is a match to Aja Vechincov. But the blood from the foot print at the second scene is a match to the third victim, Alia Kraushaar." Nick said, pointing to the third picture. "According to her husband, she cut her right arm last night. The blood on the shoe print at the third scene is a match to the third vic. I checked the husband's shoes, but the only shoe with blood on it was dress shoes, which he claimed to have worn the night Alia cut open her arm. The prints don't match."

"Ah, Alia Kraushaar is a 33-year-old, blonde, German." Sara added.

"Right. So, the ages are in order: 31, 32, 33." Nick said.

"They're all blondes." Jim said.

"Yeah. And their names are in alphabetical order." Grissom said. "Aja, Akia, Alia."

"So the next victim should be 34, blonde, and be an 'Am' name." Nick said. "And we've got nothing to stop him." He added sadly. Not good.

"The camera from the gas station shoes the killer killing the second vic, but you never see his face." Sara said as she stared at the pictures of the three women. There must be another connection, Sara thought to herself. "Whoever did this has been planning for a while." Sara added silently. _The names and ages couldn't have been a coincidence, _Sara thought to herself. _He thought this out. The sick bastard._

"If only Ames was here." Catherine muttered, startling everybody. Nobody had been prepared for that. Everybody looked at her, eyes wide, confused and surprised.

"Why?" Grissom asked. He was confused as to why Catherine would suddenly bring Amelia up. Hardly anybody talked about her anymore. It was just too difficult. Everybody had been great friends with her. And then she put in a transfer. Nobody expected it. And nobody expected not to hear from her.

"Because she's great at serial murders!" Catherine said, surprised that everybody would forget that. Amelia had always been great at solving serial murders. She was always a logical sort of person, very smart when it came to finding a pattern or a connection between two or more people.

"Oh. We can't forget. Each victim's left hand was a letter from sign language." Sara felt it was better to switch from the topic of Amelia. Everyone was very...tense when it came to her. Sara took out three pictures and laid them down below the pictures of the women. "D, I, E. Die."

"Is that everything?" Grissom asked, looking around, grateful for the change of subject.

"The blood on the knife we found matches both vic one and two. Doc Robbins found deep cuts in all three victims backs, the blade struck the left kidney. He said the wound on the third victim was made by a larger blade." Nick told him.

"Ok. So, after watching the video from the gas station, this is what he does. He waits until there's hardly anybody around the victim and then walks up behind them. He stabs them, then slams their head through the window, then into the door a couple of times and positions them the way he wants." Sara said, talking it all out. "In reality, it probably takes about a minute or so. Serious anger issues, maybe?" Sara offered. Catherine nodded.

"Possibly. Ok, Let's think try this. Think like Ames." Once again, surprised faces all around. "You're a extremely smart woman, or man, who is very logical. Look over everything and I mean everything. You know how Ames would literally spend hours going over what we thought were pointless things. Look over every word from friends, neighbors, boyfriends, husbands; every piece of evidence. What do you find?" Catherine looked at everyone. Everyone was trying to figure it out, which sort of surprised Catherine. Papers were being sifted through; photos were being looked at carefully. Everyone was in the mood. Or so she thought.

"You find a group of people who need to go home." Grissom said, standing up. He grabbed a folder and stuck it under his arm. Everyone looked at him, confused. "Get some rest, food, and take a shower."

"But Griss," Nick started to protest.

"No! There's nothing new. We'll pick this up when we've all had some sleep." Grissom walked out of the room and headed toward his office. Silence engulfed the room as they tried to figure it out. Grissom had never done that before. He always wanted everybody to spend hours looking over everything.

"I'll see you guys tonight." Warrick muttered as he stood up to leave. Everyone slowly muttered goodbyes and left. Nobody could understand why Grissom was so upset.


	5. Grissom's Pain

**Title:** Love Bites

**Pairing:** Sara/Nick, Amelia/Speed, hints at Amelia/Grissom

**Spoiler:** Lost Son, Viva Las Vegas, Pilot, basically all CSI episodes up to season 4/5ish.

**Summary:** After Nick's older sister Amelia transferred from Las Vegas, he thought he'd never see her again. Then she became a victim in a serial killer's game. Now, the Las Vegas CSIs are racing against time to find the killer.

**Disclaimer:** I only own what you do not recognize. I.E: Amelia, Evan, and the victims and suspects. CSI Belongs to Jerry Bruckheimer and all of those smart people who created these fine CSI series.

**My Original Note:** This is a flashback sort of chapter. It starts with the pilot episode for CSI: Las Vegas. Sorry it's sort of stupid...i guess. I just sort of wanted you to get a semi-feel for what Amelia's place had been like when she had been in Las Vegas.

**Chapter 5: Grissom's Pain**

_"You send me to a broken state_

_Where I can take the pain_

_Just long enough_

_That I am numb_

_That I just disappear_

_So go on and fight me_

_Go on and scare me to death_

_Tell me I asked for it_

_Tell me I'll never forget_

_You could give me anything but love_

_Anything but love" -Apocalyptica featuring Cristina Scabbia "S.O.S. (Anything But Love)_

Grissom smiled at Holly. She looked around his office again, a little put off by all of the creatures. It was natural for anybody that came into his office. Holly held the gauze tighter to her arm. She was a little weirded out by having to give blood, but didn't ask why.

"If you say so." Grissom popped a grasshopper into his mouth as the door opened.

"Grissom?" The person called out. She walked into view and stopped. _"Didn't your mother ever tell you not to play with your food?" _She signed to him. Grissom smiled as he turned and put the jar back in the fridge and then looked back at her.

"Still here?" He asked, joking. She walked towards the desk, one of her 'shut up' faces on. She was about 5'6", short brown hair, fair skin, and a southern drawl with some words. She was the one person Grissom could stand to be around. She didn't find the bugs and dead animals disgusting, she found them interesting, hence the reason he let her keep a desk and some things in his office.

She stuck out her tongue. "Shush." She turned to Holly and smiled. He would miss her smile. She stuck out her hand. "Hi! I'm Amelia Martin." Holly took Amelia's hand. Amelia had an assortment of nicknames. Grissom and Warrick usually called her Melia or Mel. Catherine, Nick, and Greg would call her Ames or Amster. Jim just usually called her Amelia or Amy.

"Holly Gribbs." Amelia stuck her hands back in her pockets after they shook hands.

"So you're my replacement, huh?" Amelia asked. Holly nodded.

"If you're the one leaving, then yeah."

"Well...you'll have fun, that's for sure." Amelia looked at Grissom and winked. He smiled at her.

He would miss everything about her.

"What can I do for you?" Grissom asked.

"I just came to say bye." Amelia said innocently. Grissom gave her his 'yeah, right' look. She rolled her eyes. "Don't be mean Gil." She walked over to her desk and grabbed the only folder on top of it. She walked back to Grissom and handed it to him.

"I talked to the wife again. Have fun." Grissom took the folder.

"Thank you." He said softly. Amelia smiled and turned to Holly.

"Have you talked to Brass yet?" She asked. Grissom rolled his eyes as he set the folder on his desk. Holly shook her head and Amelia frowned. "Just remember he likes to scare people. Just keep your cool." She told Holly. Holly nodded.

"I'll remember that."

"Ok." Amelia balled her hands and turned to Grissom. _"I've got to go."_ She signed. She sighed, obviously not ready to part with him or the office or anything else here.

_"We'll miss you."_ He signed back, talking out the words. That was another thing he'd miss. Amelia was the only one who knew that he knew sign language. Amelia told him that a friend of hers from middle and high school had been deaf. Her friend had taught her how to sign.

Amelia walked behind the desk and gave Grissom a hug. It was warm and gentle. Something Grissom always hoped for.

He never wanted it to end.

But she was married.

As Amelia pulled away she kissed Grissom on the cheek. He was too stunned to do anything. She walked back around the desk and smiled at Holly.

"Good luck and have fun."

"Thank you. Good luck wherever you are going." Holly said. Amelia smiled and walked around the shelves and headed towards the door.

Then it hit Grissom that he didn't even know where she was going to.

Before he could stop her she was out the door.

She was gone.

---Grissom stared at the picture of Amelia and Nick as the memories of her last day flooded back to him. Amelia had kept three pictures on her desk when she was here. One was of her and Nick, the next one was of the whole CSI team, and the last was of her family in Dallas. Amelia had left the pictures when she transferred so Grissom kept the one of her and Nick on his desk, the other two he gave to Nick.

Grissom had taken the picture when Amelia first came to Las Vegas. He could still remember that day.

_---"Hey Griss! Take the picture!" Nick said, handing the camera to Grissom. Grissom rolled his eyes and took the camera.---_

Amelia had been wearing her usually brown track jacket with a black shirt and blue jeans. Her hair was short; long bangs and then short all the way around. She would sometimes spike the hair in the back. Amelia's hair was a honey brown color, unlike Nick's dark brown.

Grissom looked up as Catherine walked into his office. She looked like she had taken his advice. She was wearing clean clothes and looked refreshed. Grissom cringed inwardly as he wished he had gone home to take a shower and get some sleep.

"Have you been here all day?" She asked, giving him one of her looks. Grissom sat up in his chair and forced a smile.

"I lost track of time. Sorry." He apologized. Catherine raised her eyebrows and rolled her eyes.

"They found another body Griss." Catherine told him. Grissom sighed and rubbed his eyes. "She's alive." Catherine added. Grissom shot up out of his seat.

"Let's go." He hadn't expected that. This woman would be a valuable witness and maybe now the killings would stop. Grissom could only hope as they rushed out to Catherine's Tahoe.

---Scene #4---

When Grissom and Catherine reached the scene, the fourth victim had already been rushed to the hospital. Nick, Warrick, and Sara were already processing the scene. Grissom and Catherine walked over to a grim looking Jim Brass, their kits in hand. Jim looked up as they approached him. Before he had even said a word, Grissom could tell something was not right.

"Who do we got?" Grissom asked. Jim cleared his throat and handed Grissom a wallet in an evidence bag.

"Amelia Stokes." Jim managed to spit out. Grissom's eyes went wide as he stared at the license. It was Amelia, but with long blonde hair. Grissom set his kit down and rubbed his temples. Catherine snatched the wallet from his hands and stared at it in shock. Nobody had been prepared for that.

"How?" Grissom managed to say. He closed his eyes to think. She fit the MO. 34, blonde hair (though dyed), and an 'Am' name.

"Does Nick know?" Catherine asked, looking at Nick. Jim nodded. Nick didn't seem to be bothered by it. He was being professional and was handling it very well. Grissom couldn't believe it. His eyes shot open.

"What letter?" Grissom asked. Jim held his hand up the way Amelia's had been. "M." He muttered.

"Diem?" Catherine said. Grissom sighed.

"Possibly. Find out where Evan Martin is." Grissom told Jim. Jim nodded and headed towards his car. Grissom turned to Catherine. "Let's go to the hospital." Catherine nodded.

"There's something I need to tell you." Catherine said as they climbed into her Tahoe. "It's about Miami." Catherine said. Grissom looked at her in confusion.

"Go on." Grissom pressed. Catherine sighed as she pulled onto a road.

"Ames was there. She transferred to the Miami-Dade Crime Lab. I talked to her and I might have said something's I shouldn't have. She and Evan were in the middle of a divorce." She paused and took a deep breath. "She said Evan wouldn't let her call us. I believe that too, at least now. She walked with a slight limp, which led me to believe that Evan abused her." She paused again. "I talked to some people and found out that Evan stabbed her twice and broke three of her toes."

"And you think he had been doing it for a while." Grissom said. Catherine nodded as she parked in front of the hospital.

"It would make sense." Catherine said sadly. Grissom couldn't help but agree with her. They walked into the hospital and over to the front desk.

"We need information about Amelia Stokes. She was just brought in." Catherine said. The nurse nodded and picked up a chart.

"They just prepped her for surgery. Head trauma and," She paused to look at the chart. "A stab wound in her lower back." She told them. She looked up at them.

"Ok. Can you contact the Las Vegas Crime Lab when she got out?" Catherine asked. The nurse nodded and smiled.

"Of course."

---Lab---

"Not much to tell ya, Nick. The blood on this knife matches vic 3 and 4. The blood on the shoe print matches Ames. It's the same thing as the others. I'm sorry." Greg told Nick. Nick sighed and rubbed his face. This was not going good at all. No suspects and no new clues. And now Amelia...

Nick had never really forgiven Amelia for leaving and never calling, but he didn't want something like this happening to her. He just hoped that she would be ok and that they could patch things up.

"Thanks anyways man." Nick managed to say. Nick tried to give Greg a convincing smile, but it fell short. He knew this. Nick turned from Greg to see Catherine standing in the door, her eyes red from crying.

"Hey Nick. Anything new?" She asked, smiling. Nick shook his head and blocked the tears. Crying wouldn't do any of them any good right now.

"I just don't understand. Why Ames? What did she do to deserve this?" Catherine frowned as she watched Nick fight with the emotions. She had seen it with so many people before. But now it was different. Nick's own sister was in surgery fighting for her life and Nick couldn't do anything to help. "It doesn't make sense." Nick leaned on the door frame, unable to stand on his own, the pain too much to bear.

"These sort of things don't ever make sense. You know that Nicky. Ames just got caught up in this guys sick and twisted games." Catherine told him. He looked away from her and at Greg. Greg was trying to work, but he was listening to their conversation, blocking his own tears.

"How is she?" Nick choked out. This was eating him up inside. Anybody who worked in law enforcement had had brushes with death before, but Amelia wasn't even on the job. As far as Nick knew, she was just passing through Vegas. Nick looked back at Catherine.

"They were taking her into surgery when we got there." She told him. Nick forced a smile. Nick stood up straight as Sara suddenly showed up next to them, a large smile on her face.

"I found it!"

---A/V Room---

"Ok." Sara said as everyone gathered in the room. "I figured there had to be something else that tied them all together. Most serial killers pick victims who have some sort of tie together. Just theirs ages, names, and hair colors didn't seem like that was all, for me at least. So, I searched and I found it." She pointed up at the screen which showed a catalog cover. "It's a women's clothing catalog. Not very well known. All four vic's have ordered from it." She clicked a button and a list showed up on the screen. Four names were highlighted.

"So then I did a trace of the people who take the phone orders, which is how all four victims made their purchases. Three men have worked for it in Miami and in Las Vegas. The first two lived in Las Vegas and then moved to Miami, but the last man, he worked in Miami and then moved to Las Vegas a few months ago." Sara told them. "He took all of their orders."

"Who?" Warrick asked.

"Alexander Washington." Was her simple response. She clicked a button and a picture of a rugged looking man came on the screen. "He did a year for attempted murder on a club owner in Miami. He served if from late 2002 until late 2003. Amelia Stokes and Calleigh Duquesne, two of Miami-Dade County's finest CSIs, were on the case." Sara told them. "Washington had one TRO out on him. From a woman named Anna McKlansky. She married a man named Arthur McKlansky and he was killed in a drive by three years after they got married."

"Apparently Anna, after Arthur's death, noticed someone following her all the time. Washington made himself known by accident one time and she got a TRO out on him. She moved away a few months ago." Sara paused. "When Washington came here, Aja Vechincov was in a car accident with him. He had to pay all damages, though claiming it was her fault. Then Akia Whitmore wouldn't check him out at the grocery store. He caused $300 in damages at the store because he was angry. Alia Kraushaar, allegedly, always parked in Washington's spot at the condo complex."

"So he's probably been planning on killing Amelia for a while." Warrick said. Sara nodded.

"And he probably figured while he was at it, he would get back at the other three women. But the big question is..." Sara started to say.

"Is he done?" Grissom finished. Sara nodded.

"I couldn't find an exact address, but he does live in the same condo as Alia Kraushaar and Michael Faire." Sara said as a cell phone went off. Everybody checked theirs. It was Grissom's. He stepped out into the hall to answer it.

"Hello?"

"Gil? It's Jim."

"What do you have for me Jim?"

"Evan Martin moved to San Francisco last week. According to his friends, he's been there the whole week. Get this, a month ago, Amelia filed charges against Evan, citing abuse for the last 14 years. Amelia started dating Timothy Speedle, a Miami-Dade CSI, after she divorced Evan in 2002. A few months after they divorced, Tim walked in on Evan beating Amelia. Amelia moved in with Tim and they lived together until Tim was killed in the line of duty a month and a half ago. Then apparently, Evan started beating her again, hence why she finally filed charges against him." Jim paused and cleared his throat. "They found him not guilty less than a week ago." He added sadly. Grissom lowered his head and rubbed his temples.

"No wonder Amelia was back in Las Vegas. She was running from all of that."

"And look what she ran into."

"Jim, I need you to look for an Alexander Washginton. He lives in the same complex as Alia Kraushaar. He's a definite suspect." Grissom told him.

"Got it." They both hung up. Grissom walked back into the A/V room and sat down. Everybody was looking at him for an answer to what the phone call was about.

"And the truth comes out." He muttered. He looked at Catherine with sad eyes. "I need the number for Miami-Dade's Crime Lab supervisor." He told her. Catherine looked surprised.

"Caine? Uh, ok." Catherine was confused but never the less got her cell phone out and started flipping through the numbers. She had kept the number in her directory, just in case. She found it and clicked on it. She put her phone to her ear and listened. After two rings, Horatio Caine picked up.

"Caine." Catherine smiled at the sound of his voice. She had gotten along with him, while she was down in Miami, and she called him every once in a while to see how he was doing. It had been about two months since she last called him.

"Horatio. It's Catherine."

"Catherine, how nice to hear from you. To what do I owe this pleasure?" Catherine frowned and sighed. _Not much of a pleasure,_ She thought as she focused her thoughts. _I'm afraid._

"I wouldn't call it a pleasure."

"Oh? Why's that?"

"When was the last time you talked to Amelia?" Catherine asked quickly. Grissom stared at her as she conversed with Horatio.

"Mel? Well, that would be about a week ago. I helped her finish packing her stuff." He paused.

_--- "Thank you Horatio." Amelia hugged Horatio and bit back the tears. She had already cried too much. Horatio held onto her, not wanting to let go of his precious friend. He knew how much she was hurting and he didn't want her to hurt alone. _

_Horatio had known Amelia for four years and she was very precious to him, and to the others. They had built a strong friendship._

_"We'll always be here for you, you know that." Horatio told her, finally pulling away. Amelia flashed one of her smiles, a true one._

_"I know H. I love you guys." Amelia kissed Horatio cheek. "I need to go back to Nick. But I'll be back. I love this place to much. The 'gators are just too much fun." Horatio smiled down at her, even in all of her pain, she could be positive. _

_"We love you too Mel." ---_

"Why?" Catherine looked at Grissom. He held out his hand.

"Grissom wants to talk to you." Catherine quickly handed the phone to Grissom.

"Caine?"

"Grissom. You want to tell me what this is about?"

"We have been investigating a serial murder case. Amelia was our fourth victim just an hour ago." Grissom pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Oh God. Is she...?" Horatio trailed off, unable to finish the sentence. _First Speed...now Mel. This can't be happening, _Horatio thought. The office around him began to spin. _Not Mel. Please not Mel too._

"No. She's in surgery right now." Grissom told him, his own senses spinning around him. He heard Horatio sigh in relief.

"Thank God. Do you have a suspect yet?"

"We have a lead. Listen, Caine, I need to know if you ever saw anybody following Amelia or Calleigh." Grissom said. Horatio thought for a minute.

"To tell you the truth, only Evan. After Speed...died, uh, Evan came back around. Amelia would stay with me or Calleigh, but Evan still got to her. As for Calleigh, I never noticed anyone following her, and she never said anything. Do you think Evan has something to do with this?" Horatio asked.

"We're not sure. He's apparently living in San Francisco right now."

"Ok. Listen, I've got to go. But give me a call when you find something."

"Of course." They hung up and Grissom handed the phone back to Catherine. "Do you two remember Timothy Speedle?" Grissom asked Catherine and Warrick. They both nodded.

"Yeah. Him and Amelia were very close. Why?" Catherine asked. She suddenly didn't like where this was going.

"He was killed in the line of duty a month and a half ago."


	6. Finding The Suspect

**Title:** Love Bites

**Pairing:** Sara/Nick, Amelie/Speed, hints at Amelie/Grissom

**Spoiler:** Lost Son, Viva Las Vegas, Pilot, basically all CSI episodes up to season 4/5ish.

**Summary:** After Nick's older sister Amelie transferred from Las Vegas, he thought he'd never see her again. Then she became a victim in a serial killer's game. Now, the Las Vegas CSIs are racing against time to find the killer.

**Disclaimer:** I only own what you do not recognize. I.E: Amelie, Evan, and the victims and suspects. CSI Belongs to Jerry Bruckheimer and all of those smart people who created these fine CSI series.

**My Original Note:** This is a definite short chapter. I hope I'm doing ok. Do you guys like it so far? Ugh, I'm almost done with this. In the first chapter I said this is a 6-story...uh, sequel, if you will. Now it's a 12-story sequel. Hehe. This story will have about 11 chapters, depending. Each story will have a different amount of chapters, depending on what I want to do with the story. Ok. So, here you go!

**Chapter 6: Finding The Suspect**

_"When your world's come crashing down_

_I want to be there._

_Your god is looking down on me!_

_I'm not Jesus,_

_Jesus wasn't there!" -Apocalyptica featuring Corey Taylor "I'm Not Jesus"_

"What do we have, Jim?" Grissom asked as he got out of his Tahoe. Jim walked over, looking unusually grim, even for him. Bad news was what the older supervisor was expecting and bad news was what he got.

"Alex cleared out yesterday." Grissom sighed, but Jim went on. "But he left everything. And I mean everything." Jim added. _Ok, so some good news._ Grissom thought as he followed Jim into the building. Warrick and Catherine were following behind him. Nick and Sara had gone to the hospital to check on Amelia.

Grissom walked into Alex Washington's condo and stopped. He noticed several things, starting with the ceiling. Blood had seeped through the ceiling and dripped onto the floor. A shoe print in the small puddle led Grissom to believe, since Alia Kraushaar's condo was above his, that was how Washington ended up with her blood on his shoe.

Grissom walked further into the condo and took a better look around. As Warrick and Catherine walked in, they both muttered curse words under their breath. 3 of the walls were covered in newspaper clippings and photographs. Grissom set his kit on the floor and pulled out a pair of latex gloves. He slipped them on and walked into the kitchen first.

Sitting on the counter was a knife rack which was missing four knives. Grissom tagged it and then walked back into the living room. He walked over to the first wall.

He recognized the woman in the first section of pictures in an instant. It was the first victim, Aja Vechincov. There were pictures of her in class, at work, out to eat, and even in her own dorm room. There were even a few newspaper clippings about her.

_**RUSSIAN EXCHANGE STUDENT TO STAY FOR ALL FOUR YEARS.**_

Grissom moved down to the next section of the wall. There were pictures of a woman in a yard, in a car, at a grocery store, at a restaurant, and in her home. Grissom recognized her as Akia Whitmore, their second victim. He moved onto the next section which was on the second wall. The pictures were all of Alia Kraushaar.

"Grissom." Warrick said. Grissom turned to Warrick, who was a few feet down the wall where the largest batch of pictures were. Grissom and Catherine stood on either side of Warrick and stared in disgusted shock at the pictures.

"Amelia." Grissom whispered. The pictures and newspaper clippings about Amelia literally started at the ceiling and went down to the floor. They went from left to right for about four feet.

Catherine focused on one of the pictures. It was of Amelia being hit by a man, who looked much like Evan.

_---Amelia pulled her jacket out of her locker and sighed. Today had been a hard day. She looked up as someone walked into the locker room._

_"Evan?" Amelia managed to say before his fist came flying at her.---_

Catherine's gloved hand went to her mouth as her eyes roamed over the pictures. There were pictures of Amelia sitting at a restaurant with different people, who Catherine recognized as the other Miami CSIs. There were also a couple from a funeral.

_---Tears streaked down Amelia's face as she listened to the words being said by the Priest. Amelia sat up straight and tried to remain calm, while on the inside she was breaking. Tim was dead and now...now Evan could get to her. _

_"Ames." Eric whispered. Amelia turned to him. Horatio was on one side, Calleigh on the other side of him, while Eric was on Amelia's other side with Alexx next to him. Eric's handsome face was streaked with dried tears. "Where are Tim's parents?" He whispered. Amelia looked around and finally spotted them behind a group of people. They spotted her and Mr. Speedle gave her a small nod. Amelia smiled at them._

_"They told me, that I should get the..." Amelia broke down and sobbed into her hands. Eric wrapped his arms around her and rubbed her back gently._

_"Shhh. Ames. It's ok." After a few seconds Eric pulled away. Amelia looked up and noticed a cop walking towards her with the folded flag. ---_

Most of the pictures were of Amelia with Speedle. In some they were hugging, holding hands, or kissing and in the others they looked like they were working on cases.

_---"Well, look at the blood trail. It's not splatter. Something dripped. Most likely it's either from him walking away from the scene, holding his wound. Or, the guy walked away from the scene with a bloody knife." Amelia said, lowering herself to the ground. Amelia marked the blood trails and started taking pictures. Speedle rolled his eyes._

_"There's no point in trying to impress me Ames. You're the smartest girl I know." Speedle said. Amelia looked up at him, her eyebrows raised._

_"And there's no point in trying to impress me. We sleep in the same bed." She looked away and took a few more pictures as he laughed.---_

Catherine was appalled. He stalked her, Catherine thought as tears started to blur her vision. He invaded her privacy. There were even pictures of Amelia in her apartment cooking, cleaning, reading, changing...kissing Speedle.

_---"You're making this difficult Speed." Amelia tried to say angrily. It turned out like she was trying to be funny. Speed's smile made it hard for her to sound mad, even when she wasn't._

_"Come on Ames. You know you love me." Speed said. Amelia growled._

_"That's not the point TIM! The point is...oh JESUS! YOU made me FORGET!" Amelia sat down on the couch and put her head in her hands. "I just...I wish I could be like you, ya know? Seemingly so carefree and unafraid." Amelia whispered. Speed sat down next to her._

_"But I _am_ afraid. I'm afraid that I'll lose you to that bozo Evan. If he gets his hands on you...I'm afraid." Speed said. Amelia looked at him._

_"Speed...I'm sorry." Amelia said. Speed wrapped his hands around her shoulders._

_"You have nothing to be sorry for." Their eyes met and then their lips for a soft kiss, the kind Amelia always melts for.---_

Warrick focused on a newspaper clipping in front of him.

_**MIAMI-DADE CSIS STOKES AND DUQUESNE PUT ATTEMPTED MURDERER ALEXANDER WASHINGTON IN JAIL**_

_**'Amelia Stokes and Calleigh Duquesne, two of Maimi-Dade Countys finest CSIs, help put Alexander Washington in jail. Washington attempted to kill Chester's Club owner, Michael Garai, last weekend. Stokes and Duquesne were able to work with what little evidence they had to crack the case. Garai was in intensive care for three days.'**_

"Warrick?" Grissom said.

"Hmpf?" Warrick looked at Grissom who was holding up a picture of Amelia. Warrick took it as he realized it was Amelia at the crime scene.

"He's got one of each of them." Grissom told him.

"And the bastard's gone." Warrick said angrily.

"Or maybe not." Warrick turned and looked at Catherine who was looking at the next wall. "There's two more women. He blacked out their names and I don't recognize them." Catherine told them.

"So, he's probably still in town, waiting for whoever she is." Warrick pointed to the next blonde woman. Catherine's cell phone rang as she nodded. She answered it.

"Willows." She continued to stare at the two new, nameless women.

"Catherine, it's Eric Delko from Miami."

"Delko. Hey, how's it going?" Catherine said, surprised to be hearing from him. She had talked to him a few times over the last couple of years, but usually she just talked to Horatio.

"One of Alexander Washington's goons put Calleigh in the hospital." He told her. Catherine frowned.

"Oh my God. Is she ok?" Catherine asked, stunned.

"Yeah. She's got a stab wound and a concussion, but other than that, she's fine. How's Ames?" He asked. Catherine sighed.

"As far as I know, she's still unconscious. Nick and Sara are at the hospital with her." Catherine paused. "How'd you figure out it was Washington?" Eric chuckled.

"His goon ratted Washington out as soon as we arrested him." Catherine rolled her eyes.

"Figures. Now if only we could catch him." She muttered angrily.

"He's on the run?"

"Yeah and apparently, two more are on his list. Too bad we don't know their names."

"One of them might be Anna Sjvivovich. She had a TRO on Washington here in Miami and then she moved to Las Vegas about a month ago." Catherine stopped in front of the pictures of the blood woman.

"Sjvivovich? Sara found an Anna McKlansky that had a TRO on Washington."

"Her maiden name is Sjivovich. On some papers regarding the TRO, it says McKlanksy, and on others it's Sjvivovich. Her husband was already dead when she made the papers and then she went back to her maiden name."

"What do you know about her?" Catherine asked.

"Well, she's a widow, 37, blonde, about 5'7", has a strong European accent. I believe she's from Ukraine. Her English isn't very good, but she's speaks Spanish fluently." Catherine had to laugh at that.

"So, she's speaks Russian and Spanish fluently, but is bad at English?"

"Pretty much."

"Alright. Thanks for that. I think you may be right, she fights the MO."

"No problem, Catherine. I'm going to go catch some z's before shift starts. Give us a call when you get some info on Ames, ok?"

"Of course. Say hi to everyone for me. Bye." Catherine hung up and turned to Brass who was staring at the pictures of Amelia. "Anna Sjvivovich-McKlansky. The possible next victim." She told him. Jim nodded.

"I'm on it." He turned and left the room.

"So who was that?" Warrick asked as he took pictures of the walls. Catherine moved out of his way.

"Eric Delko. He gave me a possible name on the next victim. Anna Sjvivovich-McKlansky, the woman Sara was telling us about."

"I guess she didn't know he moved here." Warrick said. Catherine nodded.

"No kidding."

"Guys!" Grissom called out from the doorway. They turned around, startled. "They found number five! She's alive and on her way to the hospital."


	7. Victim 5 Lives

**Title:** Love Bites

**Pairing:** Sara/Nick, Amelia/Speed, hints at Amelia/Grissom

**Spoiler:** Lost Son, Viva Las Vegas, Pilot, basically all CSI episodes up to season 4/5ish.

**Summary:** After Nick's older sister Amelia transferred from Las Vegas, he thought he'd never see her again. Then she became a victim in a serial killer's game. Now, the Las Vegas CSIs are racing against time to find the killer.

**Disclaimer:** I only own what you do not recognize. I.E: Amelia, Evan, and the victims and suspects. CSI Belongs to Jerry Bruckheimer and all of those smart people who created these fine CSI series.

**My Original Note:** Woot! I'm on a roll! I have this idea and I'm just totally going for it! PLEASE let me know if you like or hate this! I'm up for any ideas! Thank you Laura! And Kiva! It's nice to know my story is appreciated (I'll be updating my TFATF fic soon Laura). oh and yes, this is a short chapter. sorry.

**Chapter 7: Victim #5 Lives**

_"Take a look and see_

_The light still shines in me." -Milk Inc "In My Eyes"_

Grissom watched Catherine and Warrick process the scene. It was a tiny bit different from the others. It looked like Washington went crazy with a knife instead of slamming her into her car. There were blood splatters surrounding the car, telling a story. A story of rage.

Grissom figured that Washington knew they were close to finding him, making him very, very angry. Grissom could only imagine what would happen to the next victim if they didn't find Washington. Grissom turned to Jim as he walked up.

"Anna Sjvivovich." Jim sounded out her last name carefully. Grissom smiled. "Or McKlansky, whichever you wish. 37 years old, widow, a parole officer with blonde hair."

"Possible motive." Grissom said. Warrick walked up to Jim and Grissom with a large smile on his face. He help up an evidence bag with a bloody knife in it.

"I lifted a workable print from the handle." He told them.

"Yet more evidence to tie him to the murders." Grissom said happily. The evidence against Washington was building up. _Now,_ Grissom thought, _if only we could find him._

"Somebody's getting sloppy. Two eyewitnesses and a print on a bloody knife. Not to mention missing knives from his apartment and those pictures." Jim said.

_---"Grissom?" Detective Jim Brass said, sitting in front of Grissom's desk. Grissom looked up from his papers. He wasn't reading them though, he was preoccupied. By her. She took up most of his thoughts. He didn't mean for her to, but he couldn't help it. She understood him and now she was gone._

_2 months._

_No calls._

_Not typical her._

_But then again...neither was putting in a transfer without notice._

_Grissom had begun to wonder if maybe something happened to her._

_"Yeah, Jim?" Grissom said, pushing her out of his thoughts. He hoped it would work for a while._

_"She's down south somewhere." So much for that. Jim didn't even have to say a name and Grissom knew who he was talking about. _Her._ Amelia Martin. The woman they let get away. Grissom swore that if she ever came back or called, he would tell her how he felt._

_"How do you know?" Grissom asked, confused as to know he would know. Jim put a picture on his desk. Grissom picked it up. It was her. On a beach with a tan and a sad smile. Grissom flipped it over. 'I'm down south. I can't come back, call, or write. I'm sorry. Melia.' Grissom flipped the picture back over and stared at Amelia. She didn't look happy at all. "That's not her hand writing." He said. Jim frowned and nodded._

_"I know. But that is Amy." Jim and Amelia had had their differences, but they were able to joke with each other and get along. Amelia could get along with just about anybody. Except, obviously, Sara._

_"Yeah. Evan must have written it." Grissom concluded. He never liked Evan much, he just hoped that Evan hadn't done anything to Amelia.---_

Nick and Sara waited patiently in the waiting room. They were waiting for news on Amelia, but no news came. It had been an hour and a half since Amelia came in; they had only been there for about 15 to 20 minutes.

Sara entwined her fingers with Nicks. She knew how hard this was on him. When they were alone and talking about their family, he always talked about Amelia. She was his best friend, even after the last four years. No matter what he said to everybody else, he still knew that she would one day come back. He knew there had to be an excellent reason for why she didn't come back and now Nick knew why. First, it was Evan. But then she got a divorce and Nick figured that she got too settled. But then Tim died...

Nick and Sara looked up as the doctor walked in. Nick shot up from his seat.

"Nick Stokes? Amelia's brother?"

"Yes. How is she?" Nick asked quickly. Sara slowly stood up.

"She's out of surgery. She's extremely lucky. The glass did not penetrate her skull, but a sliver did get lodged inside her forearm, probably from trying to protect herself. The stab wound on her lower back actually went through an old stab wound. It came close to hitting the kidney, but it was angled so it missed it by about a millimeter or so. She does have a broken pinky bone, probably from protecting herself. Now, she does have head trauma. There is massive bruising to the top of the head. No permanent damage as far as we can tell." He told them. Nick and Sara both sighed in relief.

"Can we see her?" Nick asked. Sara was touched that he included her in that question. She had figured him for wanting to see Amelia by himself first.

"She's sleeping off the drugs right now, but if you wish, you can sit with her for a while. She might wake up. She's in room I13." The doctor told them. Nick and Sara thanked him and then headed towards Amelia's room. They walked away from the doctor and headed towards her room. Sara followed quietly behind Nick, not wanting to say anything, but she knew Amelia wasn't going to look pretty. Sara noticed that the doctor was following them. He stepped up next to Sara. "I need to check a few things." He told her. Sara nodded.

They stopped outside of the door. Nick took a deep breath and pushed it open. He slowly walked over to her side as the doctor headed to the machines that Amelia was hooked up to. Sara had been right. Amelia didn't look pretty. Her head was bandaged but Sara could still make out the faint purple tint that started at her hairline and headed back. Her arms were bandaged up and she had a black eye and a deep cut on her left cheek.

"The black eye and the cut are not from the resent event. My guess is that they are a few days old." The doctor told them. Nick let a few tears stream down his face and he stood to the left of Amelia. He gently grabbed her hands and sat down in the chair next to the bed. As he looked closer at her face, he noticed tears streaming down her face. The doctor noticed it too.

"She's still asleep, it's normal." He told them. Nick looked up at him.

"How is it normal?" Nick asked. The doctor stopped writing and looked at him.

"When a victim has experienced a trauma and remembers it, if they dream about, they cry unconsciously. Such as, say you're asleep and have a bad dream. You cry in your sleep and then wake up crying. It's the same thing." He explained to them. Nick nodded and looked back at Amelia. He could see her eyes moving beneath the lids, which meant to Nick that she was, indeed, asleep. Nick barely noticed the doctor leave.

Nick remembered from taking a Psychology course in High School that the eyes move when the person is in REM sleep. Nick tried to think back to that part of Psychology. Amelia had had a great time in Psychology, but she hated Sociology and Biology and all the other '-ology' courses she took, though she always passed with A's.

"REM is rapid eye movement. During REM sleep, the brain is extremely active and the brain movement is similar to that of someone who is awake. Non-REM, non-rapid eye movement, has four stages. In the first two, it's easy to wake the person up, but you'll have more difficulty in the last two. My guess is that Amelia's in REM, because she's dreaming." Sara said, reading Nick's mind. Nick looked over at her and smiled.

"Just what I was trying to remember." He said. Sara smiled and walked closer to him and Amelia.

"I figured you would. You always liked Psychology." She said. Nick smiled. That was the thing about Sara, she knew what he liked. She knew him, even if they had only been dating for a short time. As cliché as it might sound to others, Nick knew that Sara was his soul mate.

Sara looked at her pager as it went off. It was Grissom. She picked up her cell phone and dialed Grissom's number.

"We have another victim." Grissom said as he answered his phone. Sara rolled her eyes. Typical Grissom.

"Hello to you too Griss. Who is it?"

"Her name is Anna Sjivovich, or McKlansky, which ever you prefer. She's on her way to the hospital; actually, she should already be there. From the blood splatter and the lack of dents in the car door, it's fair to say that Washington went on a stabbing spree. He was angry. So far, the letters we have are Die Me."

"Ok. I'll go and check on her in a few." Sara looked at Amelia and Nick and then turned away, facing the door.

"How's Amelia?"

"The doctor said she was lucky. From everything, it seems like he stabbed her, she turned around and braced herself with her arms as he tried to slam her head into window. Most of the glass went into her arms and hardly any into her skull. He did manage to slam her head into the door, which is probably what knocked her out. She's got bruising on her head, but other than that, she's fine. The doctor doesn't think they'll be any permanent damage." She told him. Sara chewed on her bottom lip as Grissom remained silent.

"How are you and Nick?" Grissom's question surprised her. She knew he cared, but...it was still different for him.

"I'm fine, a little on the edge, but I'm ok. Nick...he's just dealing." Sara told him.

"Ok. Check on Anna whenever you can."

"Got it." They hung up. Sara looked back at Nick. He looked up at her.

"Another victim?" He asked. Sara nodded.

"Anna Sjvivovich, the woman from Miami with a TRO out on Washington. She's alive and Grissom said she should be here soon. I'll go check on her in a few." She told him. Nick forced a smile.

"Ok." He turned back to Amelia. Sara stood uncomfortably for a minute before Nick turned back to her. "Thank you." Was all he said. Sara smiled.

"She'll be fine. I'm going to go check on Anna." She told him. He smiled and turned back to Amelia. Sara turned and left the room, hoping that this victim would also be ok.


	8. Miami Haunts Her

**Title:** Love Bites

**Pairing:** Sara/Nick, Amelie/Speed, hints at Amelie/Grissom

**Spoiler:** Lost Son, Viva Las Vegas, Pilot, basically all CSI episodes up to season 4/5ish.

**Summary:** After Nick's older sister Amelie transferred from Las Vegas, he thought he'd never see her again. Then she became a victim in a serial killer's game. Now, the Las Vegas CSIs are racing against time to find the killer.

**Disclaimer:** I only own what you do not recognize. I.E: Amelie, Evan, and the victims and suspects. CSI Belongs to Jerry Bruckheimer and all of those smart people who created these fine CSI series.

**My Original Note:** ok, this is a flashback chapter. and then..well...you should hopefully understand it at the end. uh, thank you for everyone who reviewed! I really appreciate it! Mucho love to you all. oh, the song used at the end is Aerosmith's 'Don't Wanna Miss A Thing'.

**Chapter 8: Miami Haunts Her**

_"Don't wanna close my eyes_

_Don't wanna fall asleep_

_'Cause I'd miss you, baby_

_And I don't wanna miss a thing_

_'Cause even when I dream of you_

_The sweetest dream would never do_

_'Cause I'd still miss you, baby_

_And I don't wanna miss a thing" -Aerosmith "Don't Wanna Miss A Thing"_

---Miami, 2004---

Amelia sighed and ran a hand through her hair. Today was not her day. Then again...during rape/murder cases, it was never her day. But today was worse. Today was Sunday. Sunday was never a good day. Amelia was never much of a religious person, she rarely went to church, but she did, in fact, believe in God. She just wished he'd do something about crime in the world today.

But no, it was something about this certain Sunday that she didn't like. 2 years. Though the last two years have been great...it's the first two year anniversary she had that she wants to forget.

Amelia dropped the file on her desk and sat down. All that was left was the stupid report. She hated writing the reports. She sighed and turned her computer on, waiting for it to boot up. As she waited Calleigh walked to her own desk and sat down with an audible sigh.

"I swear...the Feds are really pushing me over the edge." Calleigh grumbled as she leaned back in her chair. Amelia chuckled and typed her password into her computer.

"Tough case?" Amelia asked, waiting as her computer finally finished loading everything. Calleigh looked at her, obvious lack of sleep displayed.

"It was an easy case but the Feds have to make it difficult." Calleigh said angrily. Amelia smiled at her.

"Dennis, huh?" Amelia asked as Calleigh started her own computer up.

"Unfortunately. You know, I just do not know what his problem is. Speed and I were doing fine before this jerk wad had to burst in." Calleigh shook her head as Amelia chuckled.

"Calm down Calleigh. Don't let Dennis get to you. Ok?" Amelia said seriously. Calleigh looked at her and smiled.

"I'm ok. But...you might want to check on Speed. Dennis got him pretty riled up today." Calleigh told her. Amelia rolled her eyes and looked back at her screen and started typing.

"Speed is a big boy, he needs to learn to control his temper anyways. I don't know why you guys let the Feds get to you." Amelia said, half serious, half teasing. Calleigh looked back at her own computer.

"Oh yes, I forgot. Las Vegas is the land of idiotic, politically oriented sheriffs." Calleigh said.

"Yup." Amelia looked away from her computer as Eric and Speed walked towards Amelia and Calleigh's desks. Amelia looked back at her computer and minimized the screen she was typing on. She pulled up another screen and tried to focus on it as Eric and Speed stood in-between Amelia and Calleigh's desks.

"So you're going to ignore me?" Speed said, semi-angrily. Amelia pursed her lips and continued to type.

"Don't get testy Speed. I'm trying to finish this case, ok?" Amelia replied, not even looking up. Speed put his hand in front of the screen and Amelia sighed. She looked up at him. "What Speed?"

"Dinner?" He said. Amelia sighed inwardly, she had totally forgotten about dinner plans with Speed. She always had dinner plans with Speed, but this was their two year anniversary.

"I'm swamped Speed." She said. Speed crossed his arms, a sad look in his face. "Speed, don't. I'm sorry, but I can't right now, if I don't get this report done, H will rip me a new one. You know that." She told him. Speed sighed and rubbed his chin.

"Come on Mel. Two years. How many times do you think we'll be able to celebrate two years?" He asked. Amelia rolled her eyes.

"Hopefully only once and then next year, it'll be three and on...and on...and on." She smiled seductively at him and Speed sighed again. Amelia frowned as Horatio walked up to the group. He looked at Speed and then at Amelia.

"Why are you still here?" He asked. Amelia gave him a look.

"Because I have a report to finish." She told him.

"Isn't it two years?" He asked, looking between Speed and Amelia. They both nodded. "Then go. How many times do you get to celebrate two years?" He asked. Amelia groaned as Speed, Eric, and Calleigh laughed.

"If one more person says that, I'll scream." Just then Yelina walked up. She stood next to Horatio and looked at Speed and Amelia, who was now saving her work and shutting down her computer. Truth be told, she hadn't been doing the report. She closed the file and stood up, holding it in her hands.

"Isn't it your two year anniversary?" Yelina asked. Amelia screamed with her mouth shut, surprising everyone. She dropped the file on her desk, turned and pushed past Horatio and Yelina, heading for the locker room. She needed to be alone right now. She hated two year anniversaries. Before Speed, it only meant one thing: being knocked unconscious. She knew Speed wouldn't do that to her, but that didn't mean it made her feel safe. Besides...Evan was still out there.

Amelia pushed into the locker room angrily and headed to her locker. She threw open the door and pulled her jacket out. She didn't know why she was so mad when she knew she should be happy. She had Tim and she loved him. She knew she had forever with him and that made her happy. She just wished that she had met him before she had met Evan, then maybe things would be a little different.

The truth was that she had, in fact, been dreading this day for the last week or so. She was lucky to have Speed, and she knew that if she lost him, she would slowly die. Amelia had always been looking for someone like Speed, someone she knew she could love and he would love her back. But instead she got Evan, someone who only claimed to love her, but instead beat her when he didn't like what she said or what she wore. _How did I hide it all those years?_ Amelia thought as she sat on the bench and slowly pulled her jacket on.

Amelia sighed and stared into her locker. _Maybe..._ She thought as she stared at the picture of her with her family on the inside of her locker door. _Maybe me and Tim should take a break and introduce him to my parents. _Amelia frowned and shook her head. _No, too fast. It's only been...two years. _Amelia stood up and slammed her locker door shut. She needed to get away.

Old memories came fluttering back and Amelia tried to focus. _Don't flip Mel, come on. Don't flip! _She sat back down and put her head in her hands. Speed knew that Evan abused her, but he didn't know to what extent. He just knew it happened. Now that Amelia was out of that relationship to an extent, she couldn't figure out why she never told anyone, but now she knew. She was ashamed. Ashamed that a CSI like herself never had the balls to tell anyone. The only reason Speed knew was because he walked in on it.

Nobody else knew. Catherine just knew that Amelia had a hard marriage with Evan. Nobody else knew an inkling of it. Amelia had hidden the bruises and the broken bones, playing them off like they were accidents, surprised when everyone believed her. She was the poster child for an abusive relationship and nobody knew. She had been so stupid. So stupid to not tell anyone.

Amelia finally broke down and started crying into her hands. Nobody was here for her. She was all alone and she was a coward. She knew that if she told anybody how she felt they would hold her and tell she's not a coward when in truth, she is. She hid it when she couldn't have gotten him put away. She waited too long and now it's too late.

Her body wracked with sobs as she held herself in the dark locker room. Nobody was here to hold her. The tears dropped from her face to her jeans as the door opened.

"Amy?" A familiar voice said. _Alexx._ Amelia tried to stop the tears but the continued on coming. Alexx sat next to her and wrapped her arms around Amelia's slim body. Amelia cried into Alexx's chest as Alexx rubbed her back.

"Honey? What's wrong? What happened?" Alexx asked. Amelia couldn't say anything, she just shook her head. "Do you want me to get Speed?"

"I can't. I can't pretend anymore." Amelia managed to choke out between sobs. Alexx pulled her back and looked at Amelia.

"What's wrong?" She asked. Amelia wiped her face.

"14 years ago I met Evan. He has been abusing me until Tim saw him a few months after we started dating. He's followed me, but he hasn't touched me since." Amelia told her. It felt good to get it out. Alexx's face showed that of horror.

"Oh my god." Was all Alexx could say.

"Evan started beating me on our one year anniversary. It was always the worst on an anniversary. Our second was the worst." Amelia looked away as she thought back to that day. "I was stuck in a bed for months. It was horrible. He told everybody we were robbed and I walked in on the robbery." Amelia broke down again and Alexx pulled her to her. Alexx rubbed her back as she tried to calm her.

"Amy, it's ok. It's not your fault. Shh." As Alexx tried to console Amelia Speed, Eric, Calleigh, Horatio, and Yelina all walked in. Alexx looked up at them. "Funny time for you to show up." She said tensely. Speed pushed past everyone and kneeled in front of Amelia.

"Ames? What's wrong?" He asked gently. Amelia focused and tried to stop crying. Amelia pulled away from Alexx and looked at Speed.

"I'm a coward." She said simply. Speed looked at in her confusion.

"What? Baby? Why?" He asked. Amelia just shook her head and looked away. Speed looked to Alexx for answers. She stood up and shook her head.

"You gotta get her to talk to you. I'm sorry." She pushed everyone else out of the room. Speed looked back to Amelia.

"Mel, please. Talk to me. Why would you think you're a coward?" He asked. Amelia looked at him.

"Because I let Evan beat me for 13 years. Every year, on our anniversary, he would beat me until I was unconscious. After our two year anniversary...I was in a bed for months. Nobody even noticed." Amelia leaned into a surprised Speed and cried into his shoulder. Speed wrapped his arms around her and held her.

---Two Months Later---

Amelia followed Speed and Horatio into the jewelry store. She didn't know why she was here, but when H asked her to come, she said yes. _Chalk that up to a just great answer._ Amelia looked around while Horatio and Speed talked to the guy behind the counter. Amelia turned her back and looked at the case of jewelry next to the door.

She could hear Horatio talking, but she wasn't paying attention. I should have stayed at the lab. Amelia thought as she sighed. _Me and my great ideas._ Amelia heard a noise and started to turn around. A blinding pain shot through her body and she fell to her knees, her eyes squeezed shut. Her right hand shot up to her left shoulder and she slowly opened her eyes.

Her fingers were covered with blood.

"AMELIA!" She heard someone shout. But the pain was too much.

"What?" Then guns started to fire. Amelia leaned over her knees and stayed as close to the ground as she could. _This isn't good, this can't be good. Not good at all. _Amelia repeated over and over in her mind. Amelia sat back up and reached to pull her gun out but then Speed collapsed to the floor.

"Speed?" Amelia whispered, unsure of what she was seeing. She crawled over to his side as Horatio kneeled down, looking frantic. Amelia grabbed Speed's hand with her right hand. "Talk to me Speed, please. Don't." Tears rushed from Amelia's eyes as she realized what was going on. "Speed please. You can't leave me." Speed locked eyes with Amelia.

"I'm sorry." Was all he said. Amelia shook her head frantically.

"No! Speed no! Tim! Don't leave me, please." He muttered something and then closed his eyes. Amelia couldn't believe it. She broke down and laid her head on Speed's chest as she cried. "Tim, no!"

---"NO!" Amelia screamed as she sat up. Tears blinded her vision as she looked around. It was Tim and Amelia's apartment. "TIM!" Amelia screamed out, still having the side effects of the dream. _It can't be real,_ Amelia told herself as she looked around. _It just can't._

Tim rushed out of the bathroom and into the bedroom. He looked around and then stared at Amelia. He sat next to her on the bed and she grabbed onto him, sobbing into his bare chest.

"Mel? What's wrong?" He asked.

"I had a-a-a dream. And you died." She sobbed into his chest. Speed rubbed her back gently.

"Mel, it's ok. I'm not going to die on you, I promise." He told her. Amelia pulled away and looked up at him.

"How can you make a promise like that? In this kind of job, anything can happen." Amelia said. Speed smiled softly.

"Mel, I love you too much to give up with a fight. I won't leave you, ever. I promise."

---Lab---

"Ok, so Speed and Mel with me." Horatio ordered. Amelia looked up from the computer screen and nodded. The details of the dream had already left her mind, which was normal for REM sleep. All she could remember was that she was shot and Speed was killed. The rest had disappeared.

"Got it, H." Amelia stood up and followed Horatio and Speed out of the lab.

Amelia followed Speed and Horatio into the jewelry store. She didn't know why she was here, but when H told her to come, she did as she was told. Amelia looked around while Horatio and Speed talked to the guy behind the counter. Amelia turned her back and looked at the case next to the door. Something was familiar about this place, but she couldn't place it.

She could hear Horatio talking, but she wasn't paying attention. _I should have stayed at the lab._ Amelia thought as she sighed. Amelia heard a gunshot and started to turn around. A blinding pain shot through her body and she fell to her knees, her eyes squeezed shut. Her right hand shot up to her left shoulder and she slowly opened her eyes.

Her fingers were covered with blood.

"AMELIA!" She heard someone shout. But the pain was too much. Now she remembered. She shot up to her feet and pulled out her gun as Speed collapsed to the floor.

"Speed?" Amelia whispered, praying it was different this time. She walked over to his side and feel to her knees as Horatio kneeled down, looking frantic. Amelia grabbed Speed's hand with her right hand. "Talk to me Speed, please. Don't." Tears rushed from Amelia's eyes as she realized what was going on. "Speed please. You can't leave me. You promised." Speed locked eyes with Amelia.

"I'm sorry." Was all he said. Amelia shook her head.

"No! Speed no! Tim! Don't leave me, please." He muttered something and then closed his eyes. Amelia couldn't believe it. She broke down and laid her head on Speed's chest as she cried. "Tim, no!"

"Mel." Horatio said. Amelia shook her head, oblivious to the fact that Speed's blood was transferring to her face. "Mel, I'm sorry." Horatio said quietly. Amelia sat up and looked at Horatio, tears flowing freely down her face.

"It's not your fault H." Amelia kept her hold on Speed's hand, not wanting to let go. "It's not your fault." She said again, quietly. They sit there in silence, both looking at Speed. A few minutes' later people started pulling up to the store. Amelia suddenly remembered her shoulder and looked at it, her shoulder and arm was covered with blood. She felt woozy but didn't say anything. She looked back down at Speed.

Alexx walked in and felt her heart drop to her stomach. She rushed over to Amelia and kneeled down.

"Amelia. Is this your blood?" Alexx asked, looking over Amelia's arm. Amelia slowly turned her head to Alexx and nodded.

"Somebody shot me." Amelia said quietly. Alexx turned to Horatio but he was already gone. Alexx looked back at the door where Horatio was standing.

"We need an ambulance NOW!" He shouted. Alexx turned back to Amelia. Her eyelids were slowly starting to close.

"Amy, you need to stay awake." Alexx said, making Amelia look at her. Amelia frowned.

"Why? He's dead. And I will be soon." Amelia looked back at Speed's dead body and the tears began to fall once again. "I should have done something." She sobbed. The EMTs rushed into the store and headed over to Amelia. Alexx moved so they could get to her.

"Ma'am, where are you shot?" The first EMT asked. Amelia stared at him with a blank face.

"My, uh, my left shoulder." She told him. He pulled her shirt off her shoulder and realized that it was bad.

"We need to get you to the hospital now." He said urgently. Amelia didn't respond. She turned and looked back at Speed as Alexx looked him over. The second EMT came in with a gurney. The two EMTs helped Amelia onto the gurney and then pushed her out of the store.

---Amelia sat up and screamed as pain ripped through her body. Somebody gently grabbed her arm.

"Ames, it's ok. Shh, it's ok." He said. Amelia pushed back the tears as she recognized that voice. She turned to her left.

"Nick?" She said. How did Nick get here? She asked herself as she looked around. She was in a hospital room. "What's going on?" She asked, looking back at him.

"Somebody tried to kill you." He told her. Amelia stared at him in confusion.

"What? I don't understand...I...Wait."

_---Amelia got out of her car and sighed. She had meant to go see Nick tonight, but...she heard there was a serial murder case and she knew they wouldn't need to worry about her. As Amelia shut her door she started to walk forward._

_A sharp pain in her back made her stop._

_"Aaahhh." Amelia screamed as she realized she had just been stabbed. It was the same as when Evan had stabbed her, the same spot and everything. The person pulled the knife out and Amelia spun around._

_She had a second to register who it was. That rugged face, that stupid smile, they'd met. She held her arms up in front of her face as he reached his arm up. She thought he was going to hit her, but instead, he grabbed the back of her head and slammed her head into the window. Her arms stung as he pulled her out and then slammed her into the door. ---_

"Did you see who did it?" Nick asked. Amelia nodded.

"I don't remember his name, but I've seen him before. I remember him from Miami." Amelia looked at the door as a doctor and somebody else walked in.

"Ms. Stokes, how are you feeling?" The doctor asked, walking to the right side of her bed. Amelia felt her head and pulled her hand away.

"Like I got the shit kicked out of me." She said. The doctor smiled.

"Ok. Ms. Stokes, I'm going to ask that you rest." Amelia held up her hands, cutting him off.

"Trust me, I've rested enough. Besides, I can't sleep. Nightmares." Amelia looked away from him and up at the ceiling.

"I understand that, it's common with someone who's just endured a trauma."

"Oh, no. Not 'just'. Try 'been'. The last month or so. Trouble just always seems to find me." Amelia tried to joke, but it didn't work. Nick frowned sadly.

"Mr. Stokes, Ms. Sidle, I'm going to have to ask you to leave." He said. Amelia looked at the unknown woman and then it hit her. Sara Sidle. Amelia raised her eyebrows as Sara avoided her stare. _What are _you_ doing here?_

"Doctor, we're investigating a serial murder, we need to ask my sister a few questions." Nick said, standing up. Amelia looked at Nick in surprise. Serial murders? Amelia sighed and lay back in her bed. Figures.

"Sir, please. She needs to rest." The doctor said.

"And she will, it's just a couple of questions." Nick replied. The doctor sighed and nodded.

"Make it quick." He left the room. Sara stayed over by the door, she knew Amelia had recognized her. Nick looked down at Amelia.

"It was because of me." Amelia said, tears running down her face. "It's always been because of me. The car bomb, the parole officer, this. It's all because of me." Amelia covered her face with her hands.

"What are you talking about Amelia?" Nick asked. Amelia moved her hands from her face.

"A couple of months after this guy got out of jail, he put a car bomb in Speed's car. We had dinner and then he was walking me to my door when it blew up. We were both in the hospital for weeks. He started following around the parole officer that was assigned to him. He believed that we had both, along with Calleigh, set him up. Which wasn't true, Calleigh and I followed the evidence and it all led to him." Amelia paused and wiped the tears from her face.

"And then this. He found out that most of my family was in Dallas, but that I had a brother who was also a CSI who lived in Vegas. He skipped town and came here."

"He had a reason for all of his victims." Sara said, finally speaking up. Amelia looked at her. "The first one, she hit his car and he had to pay for all the damages, even on her car. The second one, she wouldn't check him out at the grocery store where she worked, but then the next person that walked up, she did. The third one, she always parked in his parking space at the condo complex." She told her.

"So there's four?" Amelia asked. Sara shook her head.

"Well, technically six." Sara replied.

"Six?"

"Yeah. The first three, you, Calleigh, and then Anna Sjvivovich."

"Calleigh? Oh no! Is she ok?" Amelia asked. Sara nodded.

"Calleigh's fine. You, Calleigh, and Anna were the only ones who survived. The first three didn't make it." Sara walked closer to Amelia's bed. "Amelia...we think Evan might have had something to do with this." Sara said after a few silent seconds. Amelia looked at her.

"It's possible. I know that Evan worked at the Prison while this guy was there. What's his name?" Amelia asked. Nick cleared his throat.

"Alexander Washington."

"Washington? Hmmm. I don't remember that name, but I'd recognize his picture." Nick nodded and looked at Sara.

"Oh, Nick. I forgot. They don't think Anna's going to make it. Her injuries are too severe." Sara told him. Nick frowned and looked at Amelia.

"Get some sleep Ames." Was all Nick said. Amelia grabbed his hand.

"I can't sleep Nick and you know why. Not just because of this but because of everything. Do me a favor and catch this guy." Amelia let go of his hand. Nick started walking to the door. When he reached the door he stopped.

"I won't catch him for you. I'll catch if for the ones who have died." He opened the door and left. Sara turned to Amelia.

"Uh, I'm sorry Amelia. About everything. The doctor put this with your clothes, for evidence. But I don't think we'll get anything off of it." Sara walked over to Amelia and held out a ring. Amelia took it and put it on her middle finger of her right hand. Amelia looked up at Sara with tears in her eyes and a smile.

"Thank you." Sara smiled and left. Amelia lay back in her bed and closed her eyes. She'd just focus on the good times they had.

_---Speed shut the door behind him and took off his jacket. He breathed in deep and smiled. Their apartment always smelled like her. She had that one scent that she always loved. Cucumber Melon. It was the only sort of smell she'd wear, not during work, but whenever they were home together or out at dinner. He felt in his pocket for the ring._

_It was a special ring. He was going to propose to her. The ring was a small gold band with diamond stars in it. He always called her his shining star. _

_Speed hung his jacket up and then heard crying. He took a few steps forward and peered around the short wall that kept the living room and dining room hidden from the front door. Amelia was sitting on the couch, a pillow pulled against her chest, crying. Speed started walking over to her, concerned. He could hear the faint sound of a song._

I could stay awake just to hear you breathing/ Watch you smile while you are sleeping/ While you're far away and dreaming/ I could spend my life in this sweet surrender/ I could stay lost in this moment forever/ Every moment spent with you/ Is a moment I treasure

_"Mel?" He said, startling her. Amelia looked up at him and smiled._

_"Hey Speed." She said. Speed sat next to her and then looked at the TV. She was watching Armageddon. Speed sighed and laughed. "What?" Amelia said, chuckling. Speed leaned over and kissed her cheek._

_"Here I was, thinking, you were upset about something." Speed said, leaning his head on her shoulder. Amelia smiled._

_"I was, they killed Bruce Willis!" She said, trying to be serious. They both burst out laughing. After a few minutes they were finally able to stop and they collapsed against each other on the couch. Amelia leaned her head on Speed's shoulder and sighed. _

Don't wanna close my eyes/ Don't wanna fall asleep/ 'Cause I'd miss you, baby/ And I don't wanna miss a thing/ 'Cause even when I dream of you/ The sweetest dream would never do/ I'd still miss you, baby/ And I don't wanna miss a thing

_Speed hummed the song as they watched the credits roll by. Amelia just loved to listen to this song, which was one of the big reasons she watched the movie. It was a great movie, but the song made everything so much better, at least in Amelia's opinion._

_"Laying close to you, Feeling your heart beating, And I'm wondering what you're dreaming , Wondering if it's me you're seeing , Then I kiss your eyes and thank God we're together, I just wanna stay with you, In this moment forever, forever and ever." Speed sang softly. Amelia smiled and leaned closer into Speed. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head._

_"I love you Speed." Amelia whispered. _

_"I love you too Mel." He whispered back. They both wished they could stay like that for the rest of their lives._


	9. Still Hurting

**Title:** Love Bites

**Pairing:** Sara/Nick, Amelia/Speed, hints at Amelia/Grissom

**Spoiler:** Lost Son, Viva Las Vegas, Pilot, basically all CSI episodes up to season 4/5ish.

**Summary:** After Nick's older sister Amelia transferred from Las Vegas, he thought he'd never see her again. Then she became a victim in a serial killer's game. Now, the Las Vegas CSIs are racing against time to find the killer.

**Disclaimer:** I only own what you do not recognize. I.E: Amelia, Evan, and the victims and suspects. CSI Belongs to Jerry Bruckheimer and all of those smart people who created these fine CSI series.

**My Original Note:** This is a sort of short chapter. Just here to place things together. The next two chapters will hopefully be worthwhile. I love my faithful readers. Please read and review!

**Chapter 9: Still Hurting**

_"Give unto me your troubles _

_I'll endure your suffering _

_Place onto me your burden _

_I'll drink your deadly poison" -Evanescence "Give Unto Me"_

"Ok," Grissom said as they once again sat in the layout room. "Any new evidence?" He asked.

"Amelia said she doesn't recognize the name Alexander Washington, but she would be able to recognize him." Sara said, ignoring the glare from Nick. She was really confused as to why one minute Nick was concerned about his sister and then one minute he didn't.

"So she's awake?" Catherine asked. Sara nodded.

"Yeah. She blames herself for everything that happened. Apparently, Washington is behind a car bomb incident in Miami. According to Amelia, Speedle and Amelia went on a date and when he was walking her to the door, his car blew up. I called Caine and had him fax over the case files, along with the case files from Speedle's murder. They never found the guy who had planted the car bomb." Sara set the files on the table.

"Ok. So, Amelia may be the prime target. What else?" Grissom said.

"The doctors don't expect Anna Sjvivovich to live. The injuries are too severe. They do, however, expect her to live for a few days, so if she's up to it, we might get a statement out of her." Sara said.

"I was able to figure out his route." Warrick said, standing up. He laid out the map on the table. He had the first five crime scenes marked. It was shaped like a star. "My guess, is that the next victim, hopefully the last, will be here." He pointed to a spot on the map. "Which means he might be in a hotel around the area."

"Brass ran a check on his credit cards, he has stayed at five hotels in the last two days. They were all around wherever the victims were found." Catherine said.

"Brass is checking all of the hotels in this vicinity." Warrick said. Grissom nodded.

"So, for the sign language, so far we have Die Me." Sara said. Grissom pursed his lips as he thought.

"The last victim, if we don't find him before he gets to her, will give us the answer we need." Grissom said.

"Which is?"

"What the sign language is for and why he's doing this." Everybody nodded in agreement. "Ok. I guess all we can do is wait." He sighed and stood up. "I need to call Caine and then I'm going to go talk to Amelia."

"Don't bother." Nick said angrily. Everyone looked at him.

"What?" Grissom asked, confused.

"I said don't bother. It's been four years and she's lied to us all. As far as I'm concerned, she's just another victim in a case." Nick stood up and left, leaving four confused people behind. Sara looked at Grissom.

"Whoa." Warrick muttered, folding the map back up.

"I don't know what's wrong with him. One minute he was concerned for her and the next...he flipped. I don't understand. I know you guys must be angry about everything, but she has a solid reason, for at least the first two years." Sara said. Catherine frowned.

"She does and I flipped out on her in Miami. I said some things I shouldn't have. But Nick...he's always talked so nicely about her, even after the last four years. What's his problem?" Catherine asked.

"The problem is that you guys aren't giving her a chance. Since she left, you haven't." Warrick said. "Her reasons may not be rock solid and perfectly understandable, but none of you knew what she was going through down there." Warrick started heading towards the door. He left without looking back.

In truth, he was just as bad as Amelia. Ever since Warrick and Catherine had come back from Miami, Warrick and Amelia had been calling each other. They talked all the time. Warrick always knew what was going on with Amelia. They had been good friends when she lived in Las Vegas, so when he found out she was in Miami, he didn't hesitate to get back to the way things were. He always loved talking to her.

It also didn't hurt that she was good looking.

Smart.

Very good looking.

Easy to talk to.

Warrick sighed and headed into the locker room. He needed to clear his head.

---The Hospital---

Amelia stared at the doctor. She had called him in there after she had woken up. After looking at the clock, she figured she had only been asleep for a few hours.

"Just tell me the truth Doc." Amelia said. She had been grateful that he hadn't said anything while Sara and Nick were there. She didn't want them to know. Just in case it was...dead, she didn't want them to know.

"The truth is, Ms. Stokes, that the baby is unharmed." He said. Amelia let out a breath that she hadn't realize she had been holding. The one real thing Amelia had left of Speed. His baby. She would have always had something to remind her of Speed anyways, but this was something she always wanted.

The doctor turned around as someone knocked on the door. The door opened and Grissom came in. _Grissom._ Amelia thought. All the memories of the times they spent together came flying back. The doctor smiled at Grissom and then left the room. Grissom stood at the end of the bed.

"Hey Gil." Amelia said. Grissom smiled.

_"Hey Ames. How you feeling?"_ He signed to her. Amelia chuckled and sat up.

"I'd sign, but yeah. I feel ok. How are you guys?" She asked. Grissom sat on the end of the bed and stared at her.

"I'm sorry about Nick." He said. Amelia's smile turned into a frown. She shook her head.

"Don't worry about him. It's...he's angry and he has every right to be." She said. And the truth was that Nick did. Amelia should have done something to contact him, but she didn't. She let him down.

She let everybody down.

"No, he doesn't. I talked to Horatio." Grissom told her. Amelia sighed. "You really are too hard on yourself. Nick never tried to find you, so why should you have?" He asked. Amelia licked her lips.

"Because I'm his sister."

"Yes and he's your brother. I know for a fact that Nick took 10 months to call you after he came out to Las Vegas." Grissom said. Amelia shook her head.

"But I told him I'd call." She said quietly. "I told him I would call, but I didn't expect Evan to go all psycho on me. He never objected to me talking to you guys before. But suddenly, in Miami, it was like, you guys are the enemy. I just...I don't know." Amelia looked away from him and focused on the heart monitor. Even after a few hours, the thing was starting to get on her nerves. She'd give anything to just be able to rip it out of the wall and throw it out the window.

Amelia took a deep breath.

"That doesn't mean it's your fault." He said. Amelia looked at him.

"I talked to Warrick. Ever since he and Catherine left Miami, we have been talking. So tell me, why didn't I ever call Nick or you?" Amelia asked. Grissom was shocked. He hadn't known that Amelia and Warrick had been talking.

Amelia was having a hard time being in the same room with Grissom. When she left Las Vegas, she took all of her feelings for him with her. She always had a crush on him. Then she met Speed, and while as married as she was, she flirted shamelessly with him and sometimes, she'd think about Grissom. And now she was here with him again, but this time, she was still mourning for Speed. The man who had her heart, truly, for the last four years. She couldn't just forget about him and move on.

Not with his baby growing inside of her.

"I, uh...Amelia." Grissom stuttered. Amelia sighed and wiped away the tears that fell from her eyes.

"I'm sorry Gil. God, everything is so screwed up." No matter how hard she tried, the tears kept falling. "I wasn't supposed to come back like this. I wanted to take a vacation with Speed and introduce him to everybody and then it all changed in an instant and I didn't know what to do." Amelia took a deep breath as she tried to go on. "I was so scared. Horatio and everybody was being so nice and I knew they knew how bad I was hurting, but I couldn't stay."

Grissom listened as she talked. It broke his heart to see her like this, no matter what, he couldn't be mad at her. But Grissom didn't know what to do. Even with Amelia, he hid his feelings and tried to remain as the 'intellectual Grissom' that everybody knew, not an emotional type of person that everyone else was.

But suddenly Grissom was standing up and he walked down to her. He sat next to her and pulled her to him. Amelia was startled at first, but then the tears really started flowing as she was held in Grissom's grasp. Amelia had always wondered what it would be like to be held by Dr. Gil Grissom, the most serious, smart guy you'll ever meet, and now that it was happening, she was sort of glad.

Not glad because of the circumstances, but just glad that she would at least get to experience it once in her life. For some reason, while she was held by Grissom's strong arms, she felt like she was cheating on Speed, but she didn't pull away. Instead, it felt like something was pushing them together.

But she couldn't let it go any further.

She couldn't get in a relationship with him.

It would ruin everything.

Minutes past before the tears finally stopped. But neither pulled away. Until the door started to creak open. They pulled away fast, looking away from each other. The rest of the CSI team crept into the room slowly, unable to figure out what was going on. Grissom turned around and smiled at the team as they came in. He looked down at his shirt and realized it was wet from Amelia's tears. He sighed. Oh well.

"Hey, are we interrupting something?" Catherine asked, pointing at Grissom's shirt. Grissom and Amelia both shake their head and smile.

"No, Grissom was just learning what it's like to be human." Amelia said smartly. Everyone smiled at her comment. They all crowded around the bed, but Grissom stayed in his spot. Nick eyed Grissom and Amelia cautiously.

"Well, we just wanted to ask you a few more questions about the case." Catherine said. Amelia smiled at her.

"And so you all had to come down here?" She said. Catherine rolled her eyes.

"Stop complaining." Catherine said, smiling. Amelia chuckled as Catherine pulled out at photo. Amelia took it and stared at it.

_---"Aaahhh." Amelia screamed as she realized she had just been stabbed. It was the same as when Evan had stabbed her, the same spot and everything. The person pulled the knife out and Amelia spun around._

_She had a second to register who it was. That rugged face, that stupid smile, they'd met. She held her arms up in front of her face as he reached his arm up.---_

Amelia shivered and handed the picture back to Catherine.

"That's him. I'd recognize him anywhere." She told them. Catherine nodded.

"Ok. Did he say anything?" She asked. Amelia thought for a minute then shook her head.

"Not that I can remember. It happened in a matter of seconds and then I was out. I just know that it was him." She said. Catherine nodded and smiled.

"Alright. Well, I guess that's all." Catherine said. Amelia smiled and closed her eyes. Her head was starting to pound. She could hear everybody talking around her, asking her if she was all right, but she couldn't talk. She felt someone take her hand, but she couldn't move. She struggled to open her eyes back up, but the darkness over took her.


	10. A Final Death Catches Him

**Title:** Love Bites

**Pairing:** Sara/Nick, Amelia/Speed, hints at Amelia/Grissom

**Spoiler:** Lost Son, Viva Las Vegas, Pilot, basically all CSI episodes up to season 4/5ish.

**Summary:** After Nick's older sister Amelia transferred from Las Vegas, he thought he'd never see her again. Then she became a victim in a serial killer's game. Now, the Las Vegas CSIs are racing against time to find the killer.

**Disclaimer:** I only own what you do not recognize. I.E: Amelia, Evan, and the victims and suspects. CSI Belongs to Jerry Bruckheimer and all of those smart people who created these fine CSI series.

**My Original Note:** one more chapter! This is a...different sort of chapter. I say that a lot, but it was weird for me to write. I don't know why. So, uh yeah. thank you to everyone who has reviewed! Please continue to read and review!

**Chapter 10: A Final Death Catches Him**

_"It's not your fault that you're always wrong_

_The weak ones are there to justify the strong" -Marilyn Manson "The Beautiful People"_

After Amelia passed out, everybody left the hospital. Well, Grissom did after he checked on Anna, the fifth victim. She was still unconscious, but he had her clothes. The CSIs worked the day shift to find any more clues on her clothes, but they found nothing. But the fingerprint from the bloody knife did match Alexander Washington.

It was something to lift their spirits.

And then the last victim ended up dead.

It was the start of the graveyard shift and the CSIs were behind a store. A Silver BMW Z4 Convertible was parked next to a dumpster where the body of a blonde Asian woman lay dead next to it. Beside her body, a piece of paper was found with the words 'hör auf zu schreien und wehre dich nicht.' on it. Nobody at the scene knew German, so they'd have to wait.

"Aonio Oko, 38, blonde, Japanese." Jim told Grissom. Grissom sighed and shook his head. The last letter was L. "Die Mel." Jim muttered. It was finally all coming together. But now they had him. Grissom looked over his shoulder where police were putting Alexander Washington into the back of a Cruiser.

"What's the cause of death?" Grissom asked the coroner. He stood up as the body was wheeled towards the van.

"She has multiple stab wounds, all seem to be pretty deep. I'd say the cause of death is that she bled out. She's been here for a while. Two hours at the least." He told Grissom. Grissom nodded and let him go with the body. Grissom turned to Jim.

"You and me will be the only two in the interrogation room." Grissom told him. Jim nodded.

"Good idea, though...I doubt anybody who knows Amelia will be good to do this, but...we'll work with what we have." Jim smiled at Grissom and then turned and left. Grissom turned to Catherine as she walked up to him, holding a bloody knife in an evidence bag.

"What was he doing here?" She asked, talking about Washington.

"They found him in the store." Grissom said, smirking and pointing at the store behind them. Catherine chuckled.

"You have got to be kidding me." She shook her head. "It's basically the same as the last one. He went crazy with the knife, though extremely more this time. I'm going to get this to Greg." Grissom nodded and she turned and headed to her Tahoe.

Grissom waited as Warrick, Nick, and Sara finished gathering evidence. Grissom gave the three CSIs a lift back to the crime lab.

Grissom parked the Tahoe out front and got out. As the CSIs entered the building there was a man with orange hair standing in the lobby. Grissom paid no attention to him, but Warrick headed straight towards him, a smile on his face. Grissom, Sara, and Nick stopped to watch.

"Caine!" Warrick said, sticking out his hand. Horatio smiled and shook Warrick's hand.

"Hey Brown. How's the case going?" Horatio asked. Grissom immediately recognized his voice. His voice was soft, yet hoarse.

"We caught the guy. Grissom and Jim are going to interview him." Warrick pointed at Grissom. "Horatio Caine, this is Dr. Gil Grissom." Warrick introduced them. The two shook hands.

"It's nice to finally meet you." Horatio said, smiling. Grissom smiled back.

"You too." Warrick pointed at Nick and Sara.

"This is Sara Sidle and Nick Stokes." Warrick said. Horatio stood up straight at the mention of Stokes. Horatio walked over to Nick and shook his hand.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." Horatio said. Nick forced a smile, he wasn't uncomfortable, he was just overcome with grief. "Amelia always talked about you."

"It's good to meet you too." He paused as they let go of each other's hands. He could see something in Horatio's eyes. Then he realized what it was. Grief, concern, sadness, and love. "Have you been by to see Amelia?" Nick asked.

"Yes, she was still asleep, so I didn't bother her. I thought I would come by and meet everyone that Amelia always talked so fondly of." Horatio said. Everybody smiled.

"So, come with us. We're about to interrogate Washington." Grissom said. Warrick walked alongside Horatio as they headed into the building.

"How's Calleigh?" Warrick asked. Horatio smiled.

"Calleigh's doing fine. They're going to let her out of the hospital tomorrow." Horatio replied. Warrick smiled.

"That's good." Was all Warrick said. Warrick, Sara, Nick, and Horatio joined Catherine, Greg, and Al in the room next to the interrogation room. Horatio exchanged hellos with Catherine, Greg, and Al and then they turned their attention to the room.

Grissom sat down next to Jim and smiled at Alexander.

"How long did it take you?" Grissom asked. Alexander stared at him in confusion.

"Say what?" He asked.

"How long did it take you to put everything together?" He asked again. Alexander scoffed.

"Dude, I didn't do nothing." He said. Jim smiled.

"Right. So all of the pictures of Aja Vechincon, Akia Whitmore, Alia Kraushaar, Amelia Stokes, Anna Sjvivovich, and Aonio Oko just magically appeared in your condo? Not to mention pictures of the first four at their places of death? Missing knives? Knives found with your fingerprints on them?" Jim said, pushing a file at Alexander. He shifted uncomfortably and pushed it back.

"I didn't do nothing."

"Six dead women. All with evidence pointing to you. What are you going to do?" Jim said, smirking. Alexander smirked right back.

"I read in the paper that only four of em are dead." He said. Jim leaned forward.

"Now how would that be in the paper? The last one was only found an hour ago." He said. Alexander blushed and then his face suddenly turned angry.

"Them bitches deserved it. That stupid Russian exchange student hit my damn car and I had to pay for all of the damages! Even on her ugly ass car!" He scoffed and looked away. "Then that Mexican bitch had to go and refuse to check me out. She said she was about to get off work. I accepted that and moved on to another register. Then I look back at her register and she's checking other people out! What kind of bullshit is that?" He said angrily. Jim leaned back in his chair.

"And Alia?" He asked. Alexander looked at him.

"That bitch was always parking in my spot! And she didn't clean nothing! She used to spill water and milk and all sorts of shit through the floor. Let it drip into my condo. That bitch was lazy." He shook his head.

"And Amelia Stokes?" Grissom inquiered. Alexander smiled but shook his head.

"Don't know no Amelia Stokes." He said.

"Amelia Martin?" Grissom inquiered again. Alexander shook his head again.

"Try again." Grissom looked at Jim and shrugged. He looked back at Alexander.

"You want to tell me or not?" Grissom asked.

"Speedle. Well, it was about to be Speedle. The bitch and that ass was getting married in a few months, hadn't told nobody though." He told them. Grissom tried not to let his jaw drop from surprise. In the room next door, everyone was in shock.

"She was getting married?" Nick said, surprised.

"She had been talking about her and Tim taking time off. She told me she was serious about him and that she wanted to introduce him to her parents." Horatio said sadly. "Then Tim died. It makes sense now." Horatio muttered to no one but himself, but everybody heard it.

"So you stalked her?" Jim asked, springing back from the last answer.

"She had it coming man. She and that Southern chick put me in jail for a year. It sucked so bad. So I started planning. I got out and that crazy parole officer, Anna, she got all mental on me. Thought I was following her. She put a Restraining Order out on me, so I left, and came here. Then I met them other chicks and after I got some info on them, I realized their names were in order, they were all blonde, and they ages were in order. It fit." He explained.

"What about the parole officer?"

"She never let me do nothing. It was always 'stay here, do this, do that, blah blah blah. Then the bitch had the nerve to say I was following her."

"And Aonio?"

"Man...that bitch was just up and crazy. I met her at a club and she followed me everywhere! It was hassling. I told her to get lost and the bitch had the nerve to say I belonged to her. Nu uh, Alexander don't belong to no one."

"Where did you learn sign language?" Grissom asked. Alexander chuckled at that.

"In prison they had a book on the letters in sign language. When I was preparing to do my thing here, after I heard Amelia was on her pretty little way to Vegas, I remembered that and figured I'd stick that in."

"Die Mel." Jim said. Alexander nodded. "It's about her."

"It's always been about her. Since she and that other woman were on my case. She never lets anything go. She was the same way with Evan. He used to come into work talking about her, saying that she controls his life. Always making him move." Alexander scoffed and shook his head. "He said she stalked him."

"You do realize that he stabbed her twice and broke three of her toes? That is the reason why they divorced. He abused her." Jim said. "You're little pal was lying. They moved from Dallas to Las Vegas because he had been fired from his job as the Dallas Prison. They moved from Las Vegas to Miami because he had been fired from his job. They moved because of him." Jim told him. Alexander blushed slightly but shrugged.

"Don't make no matter now." He said, shrugging again. Grissom put the piece of paper with German on it, on the table. Washington picked up the paper, which was in an evidence bag, and smiled. "Hör auf zu schreien und wehre dich nicht." He said. He put the paper down. "Stop screaming and don't resist. It's from the song 'Du riechst so gut', by Rammstein." He leaned forward on the table. "Amelia smells so good." He said. Grissom stood up.

"Have fun in jail." He turned and left the room, a nauseating feeling in his stomach. He went to his office, bypassing everybody and shut the door behind him. He sat at his desk and stared at the picture of Amelia and Nick.

_---"Just try it Gil. It's fun to be human." Amelia said, joking with him. Grissom smiled as she sat in the chair in front of his desk._

_"Don't start." Grissom said. Amelia frowned._

_"Come on Gil. You've got to get out every once in awhile. Live a little." She said. Grissom looked down at the file in his hands._

_"I ride roller coasters. You know that Mel. You go with me sometimes." He said. Amelia sighed._

_"I know Gil. I know. How hard would a little dinner be?" She asked. Grissom took a deep breath and continued to stare at the file in his hands. He knew how hard it would be. It would take every ounce in his body to keep from touching her. It's hard enough to work with her._

_"You're married." Was all he said. Amelia sighed angrily._

_"Whatever." She stood up and left his office. Grissom sighed sadly. He screwed up. He always did.---_

Horatio sat down in the chair next to Amelia's bed and gently grabbed her hand. So many things were running through his head. He had to tell her the truth.

"Amelia." He started sadly. "I'm sorry for everything. The lies and the deception. I just figured that Tim had told you." Amelia's hand twitched in his, but her eyes didn't open. "But first, you should know. Calleigh's alright. She should be coming home from the hospital tomorrow. Everybody sends their love, even Yelina." Horatio paused and let a tear slip down his cheek and fall onto the bed sheets. "Another woman was murdered, but they found Alexander Washington. He's been arrested. Evan's in San Francisco so you don't have to hide." He said quietly.

"Good. I don't want to hide anymore." Her voice said. She voice was strained and quiet. Horatio looked at her and smiled.

"There's my beautiful girl." He said. Amelia smiled at him, slightly blushing. Horatio was always calling her his beautiful girl. She had so many ridiculous, yet cute, names in Miami. It was hard to keep up with them. "How are you doing?" He asked.

"Ok, I guess. My head hurts." She licked her dry lips.

"Do you want me to get you anything?" He asked. Amelia shook her head slightly, then stopped.

"No. It's ok." She paused. "What were you going to tell me H?" She asked. Horatio looked away.

"When were you going to tell us that you and Tim were getting married?" He asked. It was Amelia's turn to blush and look away. "Mel?" He pushed.

"He wanted to meet my parents first. We planned to leave for about a week or so. It was going to be after we finished that case on the missing boy." Tears burst from Amelia's eyes as she thought back to that day. "Oh God H, I'm pregnant." She added. Horatio gripped her hand tightly.

"Mel...it's going to be ok. I promise. Everything is going to be ok." Horatio promised her.


	11. Confessions From All

**Title:** Love Bites

**Pairing:** Sara/Nick, Amelia/Speed, hints at Amelia/Grissom

**Spoiler:** Lost Son, Viva Las Vegas, Pilot, basically all CSI episodes up to season 4/5ish.

**Summary:** After Nick's older sister Amelia transferred from Las Vegas, he thought he'd never see her again. Then she became a victim in a serial killer's game. Now, the Las Vegas CSIs are racing against time to find the killer.

**Disclaimer:** I only own what you do not recognize. I.E: Amelia, Evan, and the victims and suspects. CSI Belongs to Jerry Bruckheimer and all of those smart people who created these fine CSI series.

**My Original Note:** This is the last chapter! Woot! I hope you liked! Please Read and review! Also check out my The Fast and The Furious fic: _Revenge Is Best Served Cold_. Also check out part two of the Amelia Series, _Halfhearted_, which we be out soon!

**Chapter 11: Confessions From All**

_'Crêdula rês amor est.- Love is a credulous thing.' -Ovid_

_"What did you expect to find?"_ Nick's harsh words echoed in Amelia's mind as Grissom drove her to his townhouse. Grissom was going to let Amelia stay with him until she found a place to live. She had, at first, politely refused, but Grissom insisted. Amelia had spent two weeks in the hospital. Two really boring weeks in the hospital. Horatio stayed with her the whole time.

---"I've got plenty of vacation days saved up." He joked, smiling. Amelia tore her eyes from the TV and looked at Horatio. He had that soft smile on his face that could make any girl melt. Luckily for her, Amelia had gotten used to it. Amelia chuckled.

"And you're going to waste them all on me?" She joked back. Horatio chuckled softly and looked down at his hands.

"Who else would I spend them on?" He asked, looking up at her. Amelia bit back the comment on her tongue.

_How about Calleigh?_ That's what she wanted to say. But she didn't. Instead she just smiled at him and shrugged her shoulders. She and Horatio were close and she knew he detested it when people tried to get him together with people. He also detested it when Amelia spoke poorly about his sister-in-law, Yelina. It took Amelia a while to get used to it. She and Yelina had never really got along.

Yelina always made Amelia feel like she was an inch small.

And she even had the balls to accuse Amelia of flirting with Horatio. Amelia had probably only liked Horatio like that for about five seconds.

And then realization hit in and Amelia realized Horatio would only ever be her friend.

Horatio was too kind.---

Warrick, Catherine, nick, Sara, and Grissom all spent some of their off time with Amelia. Al, Jim, and Greg even stopped by a few times. It was nice. It brought back a lot of good memories. Though a lot of bad, also.

Horatio and Grissom were able to get Amelia transferred back to the Las Vegas Crime Lab. She just had to spend one more week on bed rest. And then she would get another week of lab work, no field. But who better to take care of her than Grissom?

Amelia and Sara had put their differences behind them. Amelia had been shocked to learn that Nick and Sara were dating, but she was ok with it. Sara seemed to make Nick happy, and the other way around. That was all Amelia could ask for Nick. She only wanted to see him happy.

Amelia was sad when she learned that Holly Gribbs had been killed on her first day. The day Amelia left. Amelia liked Holly. She had figured that Holly was going to make a good CSI. But if anybody knows, and Amelia sure does, good things never last. At least not in Amelia's world.

In the last two weeks, Amelia had been able to repair the relationships she had with the CSIs in Las Vegas. Nick was a little angry at first, but then he calmed down and the two siblings worked out their differences. Amelia had yet to tell them that she was almost 3 months pregnant. She didn't know how and she didn't know when the right time would be.

Horatio had left for Miami just an hour before Amelia had been released from the hospital. Catherine and Warrick drove him to the airport. Amelia had actually been a little scared when Horatio left. Horatio had been her best friend for the last four years. When Tim was away at conventions, Horatio was the one who calmed her fears. But, an hour later, Grissom showed up to get her out of the hospital.

Amelia felt safe again.

Grissom parked his car and turned to Amelia. He could tell she was deep in her thoughts. He thought she looked sort of cute when she was thinking deeply, he almost didn't want to disturb her. But he couldn't leave her in the car.

"Mel?" He said softly. Amelia snapped out of her thoughts and looked at Grissom.

"Hmmm?" She said, looking around.

"We're here." Amelia smiled and unbuckled her seat belt.

His townhouse was just as Amelia remembered it. There were a few new pictures and pieces of furniture, but Amelia liked it. It had a nice feel to it. Comfortable.

"I put your bags in the bedroom." He said, pointing across the kitchen at a door. Amelia groaned inwardly as she walked into the living room.

"Gil." Amelia started. She turned and followed him with her eyes as he walked towards the kitchen. He walked behind the counter.

"Don't start Mel. I will not let you sleep on the couch when your back is healing." Grissom said. Amelia sighed and sat at the counter and rested her chin on her hands.

"Gil...I'll be fine." Amelia protested.

"Yes, in the bed." He turned and smiled at her, holding a pot in one hand.

"You're so difficult sometimes." Amelia said, rolling her eyes. Grissom chuckled and started making dinner for the both of them.

"I learned from the best." He shot back with a sly grin, looking at her with a twinkle in his eyes.

_"You shouldn't talk about your mother like that."_ Amelia said while signing. Grissom laughed as he turned his back to her and put the pot of water on the stove. "Speaking of Ruth," Amelia said. "How is she?" She asked. Amelia had never met Grissom's mother face to face, but Grissom had told Amelia about her and he had told his mother about Amelia. She sounded like a lovely woman and Amelia hoped she would get a chance to meet the woman.

"My mom is fine. She just got over a cold." Grissom answered. Amelia smiled at his back.

"That's good. Listen Gil..." Amelia started to say. Grissom turned around as the pasta water came to a boil. He stared at her as he waited for her to go on. He had an unreadable look on his face and Amelia hated when he did that. "Uh, I don't know how to say this..." She looked away from Grissom's now questioning face.

"Amelia," Grissom interrupted. "Would you like to have dinner with me?" He asked softly. Amelia looked back at him in confusion.

"Isn't that what we're doing?" She asked, gesturing to the pot behind him. Amelia had been planning on telling him she was pregnant but now the conversation had taken a totally different turn. Grissom shook his head and smiled at her.

"No, I mean on a..." He paused. "A date. I know you're still mourning over Tim, but I've been meaning to ask you out since I met you, but you were married. I-" Grissom rambled on. Amelia chuckled because she had never seen him act this way. He was usually so calm and collected. Amelia held up her hands and Grissom trailed off.

"Gil," Amelia started. Then she paused. She was still mourning Tim and she was pregnant with Tim's baby, but she had always had a crush on Grissom. If she didn't act now, she knew he would get away. Then she would never know if it would have worked. "I'd love to." She finally said. Grissom visibly eased.

"Great."

-----------

Nick sat next to Sara on her couch and sighed. He was going to tell her his biggest secret. Sara gently grabbed Nick's hand and gave him a loving squeeze. She was fearing that he was going to break up with her. She didn't know if she could take that.

"Whatever it is, you can tell me." She managed to say softly. Nick took a deep breath and nodded.

"I was 9 and Amelia was 10, so we were too young to stay home by ourselves. It was flu season and most of our friends had it. Cathy and Jeff were 15 and 17 so they were at work on a Friday night, which didn't make either of them happy. They really wanted their own cars though." Nick paused and gave a nervous chuckle. He had shown Sara a picture of the whole family. They all looked alike. "Uh, Cherie, Danielle, and Tabatha were all 19 and older so they didn't live at home. Our, Amelia and I, regular baby sitter got sick so this new one was a last minute baby sitter.

"Amelia was in her room reading and...I didn't know what to do. I was absolutely silent during the whole thing, scared out of my mind." A tear fell down his cheek and he stared straight ahead. Sara gave Nick's hand another comforting squeeze. "Afterwards I stayed in my room and stared at my wall. I didn't talk to anybody for days. I never told anyone. A few years later, when Ames turned 15, she sat me down and she told me she was sorry for letting the baby sitter do that to me."

"She knew?" Sara asked. Nick nodded slowly.

"Yeah. She said the baby sitter threatened her. I told her that it-it-that it wasn't her fault, but she, uh," Tears were now freely flowing down Nick's face. "She told me I was her younger brother and she was supposed to protect me. She said she failed me." He paused as Sara wiped the tears from his face. He looked at her. "She never forgave herself."

-------------

Warrick stared across the table at Catherine. After Warrick and Catherine had seen Horatio off on his flight, they had decided to have a friendly diner together. Catherine could tell Warrick was upset about something. Now, some ten minutes later, Warrick was about to tell her what he was upset about.

"Ok, I'll tell you." Warrick finally relented. Catherine smiled and sat up straight in the booth.

"Finally. Now spill." She smiled as Warrick sighed.

"I have the worst luck with women, you know that." He started to say. Catherine nodded as Warrick pushed his straw around in his drink. "So, I um...when Ames came here back in '98, I really couldn't do anything about my crush on her 'cause she was married." Catherine's jaw dropped. This was the first she had heard about Warrick having a crush on Amelia.

"You had a crush on Ames?" She asked. Warrick rolled his eyes.

"It's 'have' and yeah, I did and still do. Anyways. After she left and didn't call, I pushed her to the back of my mind."

"And then we saw her in Miami." Catherine said.

"Yeah. So, then she called me a few days after we got back here and even though we were states apart, the whole crush thing came back."

"So what's the problem?" Catherine asked. "She's here again and she's divorced. What's the problem?" Catherine asked again.

Warrick looked out of the window and took a deep breath.

"Grissom." Was all he said as he let the breath out.

"What about him?" Catherine asked, slightly confused.

"The reason I never told Ames that I liked her was because she told me she liked Grissom. I always had a feeling that Grissom liked her. And now Ames is staying with him."

"Oh. Ok, I get it now. You think they'll confess their love for each other." Catherine said, half joking. Warrick rolled his eyes again.

"Yeah. Something like that."

"You never know what the future has in store Rick." Catherine remarked, tossing a cherry into her mouth. Warrick chuckled and shook his head sadly. Somehow, he figured Amelia didn't fit into his future the way he wanted. He would have to live with that.

_**Fin**_


End file.
